Vagabonds
by Kesiala
Summary: It started as a vacation with Sora showing them the worlds he had visited. They were just three teenagers traveling together and having fun. Pretending to be normal. The trouble came when they tried to go home. Normal isn't for them. SoraxRiku
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

Author's Notes: This will probably be a long story, and at least for the first nine chapters, every chapter focuses on one character – the order is Riku-Sora-Kairi. There is a plot, and eventually they will be going on an adventure. I will also be using some of the game mechanics – like, the forms and the Heartless dropping munny and such – but obviously giving some sort of explanation.

Setting: Post-Kh2. Around nine months or so after in fact. Kairi and Sora are sixteen, Riku is seventeen.

* * *

Chapter 1 - Atlantica

Riku wasn't sure how the other two had even found enough pieces to make a Gummi ship - and thinking back on it, he was glad he and Kairi had been so very ignorant about what constituted a proper, stable and_safe _Gummi ship, because he was pretty sure the mess that Sora had enthusiastically said was a Gummi ship had been held together by nothing more than Sora's optimism. He only now realized how close they had come to dying in that first pathway away from the Islands. They had only had one cannon.

By the time they had left the next world, Riku had still be just as clueless, but even he had noticed the difference in the Gummi ship. Still, it wasn't until they had reached Radiant Garden that Riku had been given a long lecture on gummi parts by a man called "Cid" and started to realize why Sora kept giving the ship a complete overhaul - each path was different, each one getting harder.

He was glad that Sora and Kairi had built the ship, especially when they reached Mickey's Castle. The week spent there had been the best way Riku could think of to spend time - outside of just spending time with Sora and Kairi on the islands.

He pulled away from his thoughts as the ship they were in slowed after passing through a bright flash of light. He shivered as the familiar feel of magic washed over his skin - he looked quizzically over at Sora but the boy just grinned in return. That was the first thing that warned him there was something different here - Sora had looked much too smug for this to be a normal world, or for that magic to have just been a change of clothes to fit in.

But Sora was tearing his eyes away and pressing buttons and Riku exchanged a puzzled and wary glance with Kairi before tensing his shoulders, ready for whatever this world held.

Between one blink and anther the gummi ship was gone and the three were clustered around an open shell. An arch of rock was before them, as well as plenty of sea weed. Riku was about to ask what kind of world had sea weed growing on the surface, and had even turned to raise a skeptical eyebrow at his friend. He froze as he took in Sora's new body, his jaw dropping. Kairi gasped on Sora's other side, and the brunet laughed, swimming away with an easy flip of his tail.

His pale, slate gray tail - and as the brunet twisted around, Riku noted that it was complete with a dorsal fin. At least now he knew why and how his friend had become such a good swimmer.

Riku didn't dare look at his own bottom half - instead he looked over at Kairi. Her tail, unlike Sora's, was scaled, like a fish. It was also blue-purple in color, and Riku's lips twitched. "Matches your eyes."

She huffed, then grinned. "At least I don't have a dorsal fin where my butt would be, whale-boy."

"Whale...?" Finally, Riku looked down, and almost growled. He was black on the back, but there was white that spread to the sides and down most of the front, stopping before it reached his tail. Still, orcas were supposedly powerful - that had to mean something, right?

"Hey, you two going to swim, or should I just find Ariel and leave you here?" Sora swam around them in a circle, just out of reach. It didn't stop Riku from lunging for him with a mock growl.

It didn't work out as well as he had hoped - Sora slipped sideways somehow, and Riku found himself slowly circling over and drifting to the sea floor head first. Sora laughed, and Kairi's giggles added to the usually pleasant sound. Right now it was just plain annoying as his body settled gently onto the sand.

"Guess I have to teach you two to swim," Sora said in the next moment, and Riku felt a rush of mixed annoyance and gratitude. On the one hand, he didn't have to ask. On the other hand, couldn't he have taught them before Riku made a fool of himself?

"It's easy once you're shown how. The tail's most important - the rest of your body is mostly for steering. Here, take my hand." Sora's hand was suddenly thrust into his field of vision and for a moment he considered not taking it and just sitting here to brood - or, really, sulk. But Sora's eyes were shining, and he had wanted to visit everywhere so very badly - Riku couldn't ruin it for him, or for Kairi, who found each new world delightful and looked around with such wide eyed wonder.

So he took his hand and then resisted the urge to squeak girlishly when Sora darted through the water, holding his wrist in one hand, and snatched one of Kairi's hands with his other. Then he pulled them both out into the middle, and let them go. Immediately the slowly began to drift down. Kairi looked up at Sora expectantly. He was staring at them with a peculiar expression, and Riku swallowed thickly at the warm look in Sora's blue eyes.

"Sora, swimming?" Kairi reminded gently.

"Oh, right!" Sora flushed and then dragged them up again. Riku watched carefully and was confident he didn't even need to hear the full explanation. As Sora had said, the tail was the key. And weren't they both masters of keys? He ignored the fact that the metaphor didn't work that way, and as Sora continued to explain and Kairi was moving her tail just enough to keep her in place, he shot off.

He felt triumphant. He was speeding through the water, faster than Sora had dragged them, faster than he was sure Kairi at least could go, even if she learned every trick in the book. His half-new body was powerful, and he flashed through seaweed and past clamshells, ignoring Sora's cry for him to stop. He didn't need lessons.

The ocean decided to prove him wrong. He would swear later it loomed up out of nowhere, a large stone pillar, at least three times as thick as he was. He did try to brake, but his tail didn't work like his feet. He thought he almost had turning down, but it wasn't enough and he yelped as his head slammed into the stone. For a moment, he was stunned and there was a moment of darkness.

Sora caught him before he slid down into the sand, swearing softly and startling Riku enough that he turned aqua eyes toward his friend. the brunet looked angry, but Riku knew it wasn't aimed at him. So he winced as his head used pain as a way to tell him what an idiot he was and softly said, "It wasn't your fault."

Blue eyes widened and then looked away. "I still should have been watching you better. Figures you'd do something like this."

Riku winced at the accurate assessment. He was still a bit over confident sometimes, wasn't he? "Still not your responsibility - I can take care of myself."

"But you shouldn't have to," Sora reminded him, and then whispered something beneath his breath. A green glow enveloped him and Riku's eyes widened at the familiar sensation of Curaga washing over him.

He raised an eyebrow. "Kind of powerful to use just for my head, Sora. Why not just use a potion?"

"We're not fighting anything right now, so Curaga was easier to use." He felt Sora shrug, his shoulders moving against Riku's own. It took that for the silver-haired boy to realize Sora was still holding him. His eyes flickered over to Kairi. The girl was watching them with a gentle, fond smile. Riku took this as permission to stay right where he was.

"Lazy as ever," He teased and reluctantly flicked his tail, trying to time it with Sora's. It didn't work and their tails brushed, for a moment flush against each other, his dorsal fin bumping into the other boy awkwardly. Riku jerked away at the odd sensation, freezing when Sora pulled him back.

"True," he replied, and the brunet suddenly pushed him up, sending him reeling head over tail. Grinning, Sora followed, circling below him. "but I can still swim here, and you can't. Since you won't listen, maybe you can watch. Kairi, you pay attention too."

He moved slowly as Riku let himself drift back down, his eyes trained on his friend. This time he wasn't going to make a fool of himself - again. He dropped through the slow circle Sora was making and with much less confidence than before, flicked his tail and tilted his body, righting himself when his head was on the same level as Sora's. The boy grinned in delight toward him. "See? Not so hard, if you actually stay still long enough to learn."

Riku smirked but said nothing, his bruised ego quickly repairing under Sora's encouragement. Unfortunately, the brunet ruined it by darting by down and going from much-to-fast to perfectly still in an instant as he leveled with Kairi. Scowling, Riku let gravity pull him slowly down, watching Sora correct Kairi as he did so. At least he hadn't needed Sora's hands all over him, demonstrating how to move his tail and the rest of his body.

The silver-haired boy paused and then narrowed his eyes at Kairi, who blushed and shrugged, not an apologetic bone in her body. Now he wished he had been clumsier.

"Sora!" An unfamiliar voice called. Sora shot up - literally, he shot up past Riku's falling height and peered off into the space that served as an exit and entrance to the grove they were in. Riku stopped his downward movement with a flick of his tail and looked out curiously. There was what looked oddly like a city in the distance. Sora had mentioned little about the place - actually, he had done that a lot, with everything. He seemed to enjoy surprising them.

"Ariel!" Sora greeted, swimming forward hurriedly to meet a red haired mermaid. Riku's eyebrows shot up when he pulled her into a quick hug, exchanging pleasantries and news that Riku couldn't hear. Attempting to ignore the meeting, Riku moved cautiously toward Kairi, pleased when he managed to turned and stop in the same motion, exactly as he had meant.

"Who is she?" he asked, jerking his head toward the girl.

"No idea," Kairi said cheerfully, arranging her tail on a rock. Riku scowled, then reluctantly did the same. Kairi continued, "He tells me no more than you. Still, this is fun, isn't it?"

Riku tapped his head meaningfully and said nothing. Kairi giggled. "You know that hitting your head was worth it. "

He ignored that, leaning back to keep her and Sora in his field of vision. "I thought you and Sora weren't together anymore."

"Doesn't mean I don't like his hands on me. I know exactly what those hands can do, Riku. Just because he's not in love with me doesn't mean I can't enjoy his touch." Riku frowned at her choice of words, but nodded slowly. Even though she had been the one to break it off, he should have expected that. Sora wouldn't risk hurting her by breaking it off - Riku had never asked for details, but once the idea was there he knew it was true.

"He was right though. He never said it, but I could tell when he looked at me. He never would have been totally happy with me. He might not even have noticed it - but he would have felt... obligated with me. He needs someone who he doesn't feel like he has to settle down with them - especially because with his duties, that's impossible. The darkness might not be making trouble now, but its still stirring out there. I can feel it - and I would bet all of Sora's munny that you two can as well." The conversation had turned from normal teenage near-drama to something much more serious. Riku shifted his mood accordingly and stared into the water distantly.

"Stirring - but without any goal except what the Heartless always do - collect hearts. Each world can defend itself from disorganized heartless - but you're right. Eventually someone will gather enough power that they'll try their hand at Kingdom Hearts. And Sora will jump up to be the hero." Riku smiled, faintly. "This time, I'll be next to him."

"I hope I can be, too," Kairi said softly, "But if I can't be - if I'm not strong enough -then at least I know one of us will be with him."

"Just make sure not to get kidnapped next time and everything will work out fine," Riku said, smirking as she huffed and mock glared at him.

Next thing he knew, there was another red head in front of him. "Hello! You must be Riku, the one Sora was looking for all that time!"

A bit stunned - everyone at Radiant Garden had repeated the same thing, nearly word for word... Well, Cloud had glared more, Leon had grunted, but the girls at least had been similar. - all he could do was nod. She smiled brightly. "Oh, I'm so glad! I'm Ariel! Sora was here with Donald and Goofy, and they helped me win Eric's heart! And they sang in our musicals!"

Riku blinked, and uttered in time with Kairi, "Sora..._ sang_?"

He tilted his head back to look up at the blushing brunet and missed the sparkle of mischief in Ariel's eyes. "Oh yes. More than that - he performed! He did great!"

Ariel giggled and couldn't resist adding, "They even sang a song instead of saying goodbye."

Riku smirked wickedly. "Sora, how come _we've_ never heard you sing? Aren't we your friends?"

"Oh _no_," Sora hissed, and turned pleading eyes toward Kairi - who mirrored them perfectly.

"Don't we deserve to hear your voice, Sora?" Kairi asked, eyes slowly looking toward the floor, voice soft and sad. Riku knew Sora knew they were faking - they all could tell when the others were lying now.

It didn't stop Sora from looking panicked. There was a brief flash of it in his blue eyes before he crossed his arms over his chest and stared down at them stubbornly. "I'm not singing, or dancing, or performing in any way."

Ariel giggled and swam up to his height. "Since you won't sing, did you want to give your friends a tour? I could help."

"I want to see the palace!" Kairi exclaimed, her eyes bright in sudden excitement.

Riku shrugged, but under Sora's questioning gaze had to say, "I think I would rather explore here."

Kairi looked disappointed, as if she expected Sora to agree with Riku - he was expecting that the brunet would agree with Kairi. Instead, Sora exchanged a look with Ariel, who pursed her lips, then nodded and offered to Kairi, "I'm a princess - the youngest. Or I was before I was married. I've visiting for a few days, so I could show you the palace and the city while Sora could show Riku around - and you can all stay in the palace together. Daddy won't mind."

Kairi didn't look totally satisfied with the arrangement, but nodded anyway and hesitantly swam up to Ariel, glancing at Sora before looking back at the redheaded mermaid. "I guess that's okay." She smiled and added, "It's a good chance to get to know you, too! Sora made so many friends that I know nothing about!"

Riku approved wholeheartedly - on the way they were split up, and on Kairi gathering information. Sora really did keep too many things to himself. Ariel was already chatting to the other girl, and swimming slowly, giving Kairi a chance to adjust to the gentle traveling pace the mermaid set. The brunet boy drifted down to the rock Kairi had been sitting on and tilted his head, regarding his friend.

Unable to read that intent gaze, Riku shifted uncomfortably, but refused to simply ask. Sora would either explain eventually - or just stop. He had been doing that too much lately, and with a small secretive smile that Riku had rarely seen before.

"Come on. Let's see if you know how to swim yet." Sora broke the silence suddenly and pushed up from the sea floor, spiraling up until the sun from above made him into just a silhouette.

Riku smirked and shot after him - and then beyond him. "Let's see if you can keep up!"

There was a short burst of laughter from the brunet - and then the dolphin-tailed boy shot past _him_. "Don't be so slow, Ri-ku!"

The silver-haired teen narrowed his eyes and focussed, his body streamlining almost naturally now as he raced after his agile friend. He was just a flash of gray and brown, cutting through the water as if he had been born to it. Riku still felt awkward in comparison, despite the fact he was on his tail - his new body had more power to it but Sora knew how to use his better.

In a game that had no set rules and had started so sporadically, Riku didn't consider what he did next cheating. Sora had just seen how close he was and was about to pull even farther ahead. He sent a sudden spurt of speed and energy into his tail and launched sideways and forward, catching a startled Sora in a tackle.

Smirking, Riku botched any attempt Sora made to balance them and drove them both downward, stopping only when a cloud of sand rose around them and he had his friend pinned, tails overlapping and hands curved along the slim shoulders. He could feel how deceptive his friend's build was like this, when the muscles moved beneath his fingers as Sora half heartedly pushed at him with his eyes crinkled in laughter.

"That was a mean trick," Sora finally scolded, but made no move to dislodge the older teen. Riku smirked and slipped off, settling onto his side next to his friend.

Sora grimaced and shifted to face him, on hand moving to rub at his backside. Curious, Riku lifted his head - and cursed mentally. He had forgotten they had dorsal fins. He didn't voice it, but his eyes filled with concern as he met Sora's gaze. The smaller boy rolled his eyes. "I'm fine, Riku. If Heartless can slam me into walls made of stone, being pressed into the sand isn't going to hurt me."

Riku shrugged, but shifted closer, pretending he was still concerned and - after seeing Sora's shrug and smile of permission - ran a hand around the dorsal fin. That wouldn't have been so bad, but there was no reason for Riku's other hand to be on Sora's bare back or playing with the tips of his hair. The keyblade master didn't object, and shivered slightly under his hands.

"You know," Sora said, and Riku paused, cocking his head to listen. "We're supposed to be exploring the ocean. _Not_ each other."

Riku blinked. Sora didn't say things like that. At least... He hadn't. Of course, it wasn't like they had conversations even relating to relationships - Riku had avoided the subject altogether once they came back to the islands, even after Sora and Kairi weren't together. He didn't think Sora had changed much since they came back - but he had certainly changed before they were back on the island.

"Not that we really were," Sora said, sounding oddly regretful, "But its not the same in these bodies anyway. We can do that later. Come on!"

Before Riku could react, or even let it all sink in, he was being pulled through the water once more. Sora seemed to know where he was going and stopped suddenly in a cavern, swimming more slowly to an exit. He flashed a mischievous grin over his shoulder. "Want to see if you can really swim yet?"

He saw the challenge for what it was - a distraction, and a trap. But he couldn't figure out what the long tunnel Sora was hovering outside of had to do with it. He couldn't just shrug off a challenge either, even one as unfair as this. Perhaps if he, against all odd, did win, he could persuade Sora to explain what he meant - or at least let him go back to what he had been doing.

"Fine. How about a race?" He arched a silver eyebrow at Sora's growing grin.

"Perfect. But - to the beginning of the tunnel." Riku narrowed his eyes at the answer and swam toward Sora, staring at the water. It looked different - rushed somehow. A dreadful suspicion in his mind, he realized he had already agreed.

"One," He began, and he and Sora moved to be at the exact same starting position - or as near as they could get. He was on the inside, and in his opinion, he had the advantage there at least.

"Two," They said in unison, and Sora's eyes glittered with an unknown emotion as he stared at Riku. It unnerved the boy a little.

"Three," Sora said alone, and gave Riku a quizzical look. Riku jumped guiltily - he had been too busy puzzling over the look from before. He refocused his mind, muscles tensed.

"Go!" They shouted as one, and dove into the tunnel. For a moment, Riku thought he might have a chance. He was ahead of Sora for a brief second - and then he found out why it was to the beginning of the tunnel, and not the end. There was a current here, powerful and implacable. He twisted his head, looking helplessly at Sora - who was smirking. It was odd to see it, but Riku was too busy being outraged at the boy outsmarting him to care. Sora was in the current as well - but not being pulled back.

In a last minute desperate move as the current, despite all his efforts, moved him back, he twisted sideways, putting every ounce of power into his tail, and grabbed for his friend once again.

He didn't quite manage it. His hands reached out, but only brushed him - but did settle on the dorsal fin on his friend's back. Riku reacted instantly, grabbing on fiercely and glaring at Sora, who had turned his head, and looked surprised at what was hampering his movements somewhat.

It didn't take long for Sora to take advantage of this. Soon Riku was thinking it had been a very bad idea because his friend was taking off, and once out of the current, with more speed than Riku liked to think about. He held on out of habit, and with the hidden fear that Sora would just keep swimming and leave him if he did let go.

It wasn't a very long trip, and Riku tried to watch how his friend was moving in order to duplicate the rapid dashing through the ocean. Then, with barely any warning except for a quick look and sudden slowing, Sora twisted out of his grip, leaving Riku still going in another direction. The older boy stopped himself and looked curiously - and with more than a bit annoyance - at Sora, who simply pointed behind Riku.

He turned and had to admit this was the sort of thing that was much better than a city. Cities were everywhere, and even one filled with fishy people couldn't be that different. But sunken ships - now how often did one get to see a sunken ship, just like out of a childhood story?

"It could have been sunk by pirates," Riku said immediately, and heard Sora laugh in delight.

"Or a sea monster," Sora replied, swimming by and toward the ship.

"Or a sudden storm." Riku followed, admiring the ship as they circled it.

"Drowning someone's true love?" Sora asked, and darted away at Riku's scowl.

"What are you, a girl?" He called after, his scowl melting into a grin once the boy was out of sight.

"You wouldn't like me half so much if I was, Ri-ku," Sora taunted from somewhere ahead, and Riku jerked back, tail faltering mid movement. His eyes narrowed. How much did Sora know? How _long_ had Sora known? And why now?

Determined to have some answers from his friend, he raced after Sora - only to find him no where to be found. He swam up, hoping for a glimpse of the dolphin-tailed boy - though he noted in frustration that everything was gray around here and it wouldn't be terribly difficult to hide.

"Sora!" He called finally in frustration. "Come out! I don't want to play?"

"But I thought you liked games?" Riku froze at the familiar question and felt all his anger die in sudden guilt. He had said that once, as he stole a wooden child and forced Sora into actually pointing the keyblade at _him_. Gravity pulled him down toward the ship, but he didn't notice until he was above an open hatch and hands pulled him down and through.

Anxious blue eyes stared at him. "I didn't mean it like that," Sora said softly. "I was just teasing."

But Riku had meant it like that once, as an angry taunt, and Sora_should_ have thrown it back at him on purpose - but he hadn't. Riku jerked his face away, only to have Sora turn his head back with an insistent hand on his chin. "Hey now, what have I said about brooding over the past?"

Riku's lips tugged into a faint smile. "Lots of things. Most of them including 'Stop that' and whacking me with a toy sword - or throwing me into the ocean. You can't do that anymore."

Sora called his Keyblade to his hand and looked at Riku's head speculatively. At the silver-haired boys nervous look he laughed and let it disappear. "So? Don't. The past is the past and you care more about it than either of us do."

The "us" included Kairi, he knew, and he had to admit it was true. Kairi and Sora were perfectly happy in forgiving him and ignoring the fact that he had caused most of the troubles they had went through. He had opened the door - it was even his fault Roxas and Naminé had existed.

He was brought back to the world by an exasperated huff and once Sora was sure his eyes were focussed again, the boy pulled Riku toward him. He half struggled, not sure what to expect - and froze when Sora brushed the bangs away from his face with an oddly gentle hand. He could feel the calluses on his hand from the keyblade. The brunet whispered softly, "Stop that," and kissed him.

It worked just as well as hitting him had, since his thoughts let go of the past altogether to cling to the present. He was sure Sora had meant it as a gentle kiss, since the boy tried to pull away after only a moment, but Riku wasn't going to let a chance go by that he might not have again for a long time. He clung to his friend, pressing as close as possible and wrapping one arm around Sora's waist, brushing both human and dolphin skin while the other arm went back and up, a hand in Sora's hair to keep him there as Riku deepened the kiss.

That Sora returned it with a passion nearly equal to Riku's was surprising. So was the hand on his chest, dancing across his ribs and sliding almost teasingly around his nipples.

Sora was also the one to push him away - hard enough that it sent them both back a bit, Sora bumping into the stairs behind him and Riku stopped by the wall. They stared at each other, Riku watching and waiting, nerves taut and wondering, despite what Sora had been hinting at, if he had just ruined their friendship. Sora was staring, an unreadable expression on his face. Then he shook his head, and smiled gently. Riku relaxed. They were fine.

He half expected Sora to want to talk about it. But he didn't, just swam forward and grabbed Riku's wrist. "Come on. Let's see if I can teach you to not have to use me to go through the current."

Riku had to be satisfied with that. The week they stayed there passed much too quickly, and never again was Riku able to get enough time alone with Sora to find out if it had been a fluke - or to try it again. But Riku was patient. Sora had visited many more worlds - Riku hadn't watched him for all of them, but Sora had spoken of them. Riku could be patient. Another world was another opportunity - one he would take.

* * *

End Chapter One.

Yes, I know that having Ariel probably wouldn't have been there. Sorry. And for those of you wondering about a certain character mentioned as being in Radiant Garden who shouldn't be, that will be explained – sort of – at a much later date. For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, it's a post-Sephiroth battle spoiler.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

Author's Notes: Some past non-canon AxelxRoxas – and also kinda sorta hints of Roxas x Sora, but considering its the same body, it's not something to worry about and is more friendship than anything else. Just thought there should be warnings. Also, I am awful at describing clothes and making up outfits, so the Kairi and Riku's Halloween Town outfits FAIL. Anyway. Onto the story!

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Chapter 2 - Halloween Town

Sora was more worried about the Gummi ship than what his friends would get up to by themselves, but he did remember to cast the magic to change their outfits - though he did it vaguelly, giving it direction, but not many details. It still left him a bit stunned as they were changed with him into proper Halloween Town attire. They stared at him in equal fascination. But while he knew his outfit was great - very scary if he admitted it, they both had suitably creepy clothes now as well.

Kairi's changes were more obvious at first, her outfit having changed to dark red - pink in Halloween town just wasn't done - and two wings protruding from the back of her outfit. They were feathered, and larger than his, though not large enough to fly, just large enough to make an impression. At first glance they seemed to be angelic wings, contrasting eerily with the costume, but then he noticed that the edges of her wings were charred - blackened, as if they had gone through fire, and her healthy skin tone was now sallow and her cheeks looking almost sunken. Her eyes, though themselves would usually seemed bright and lively, had been deadened by makeup around them. Sora didn't think it was quite as scary as his, and it was still quite girlish - but at least she wouldn't be totally out of place, though the wings seemed a bit odd.

Riku didn't have as many changes - his clothing had darkened to black and gray, and was a bit tighter, but it was his skin, always a bit more pale than his but now so pale it was almost irridescent that unnerved Sora a bit. That and the flash of fangs in his mouth. His eyes didn't seem so lovely now - they seemed almost demonic and glowing. His hair, like all of theirs, hadn't been touched, but it only added to the effect. If Kairi looked like a fallen angel, Riku looked like the word "heaven" would make him burst into flames. Sora let out a slow breath, unconsciously echoed by his friends. "Well."

"Is this really necessary?" Kair asked nervously after Sora broke the silence. She was glancing around the gummi ship and peering out the window. They had actually landed, since Sora needed to make repairs, instead of just transporting to a designated safe point, and upon peering out the windows, Kairi wished they hadn't been so excited to visit all of the same worlds as Sora.

"Don't worry. The people here like scary things, but they're not mean spirited. Just find Jack and tell him you're friends of mine - and if you run into three little kids, don't trust them, no matter what," Sora warned, tearing his eyes from them and moving to the back of the gummi ship, pausing when he felt their stares on him. "I'll be along once I've finished repairs."

There was still no movement, and Sora grinned over his shoulder. "What, can't go anywhere without little old me?"

That did it - Riku was pulling Kairi out of there almost before he had finished. The silver haired boy only paused once to comment, "Maybe some people find you scary in that Sora, but I think it looks hot."

Before Sora could comment, they were gone, heading into town, and Sora shook his head. He hesitated, looking at his reflection in the glass of the cockpit window. A familiar voice echoed in the vaults of his mind, _'I think I agree with him. It's not you but it does add... something.'_

"This from two people who spent a year in darkness," Sora reminded gently. While it would have made Riku start brooding, the presence in his mind shrugged it off with the gentle feeling of amusement.

_'That doesn't change our taste. Just admit it - you look good. Them too, but I can always see Riku as a bit darker sometimes and Kairi's outfit very dark at all - it's more startling on you.'_ For a moment, Sora caught a flash of a smile and a blond head ducked down in almost shy sheepishness. Without Kairi's presence - Naminé's, in Roxas's mind - when Sora's Nobody spoke, sometimes bits and pieces of Axel's Roxas were apparent - a bit darker, a bit moodier, but mostly Roxas was as he said - how Naminé remembered him, an overall nice boy, if quieter than Sora and less charismatic and prone to sadness because of what DiZ had done. Sora wanted to ask Kairi if it was the same with the blond girl - but he didn't know if she was spoke to like he was.

"I _do_ look good - and I can admit that now, you know. Don't make Riku's mistake in thinking I'm still naive. I know I'm good looking, Roxas, but there's no reason to be conceited about it. It's just looks." Sora moved out of the ship and toward the engines. He had spare parts - they always had spare parts - it just took more time without the chipmunks.

_'I know. At least you have them.' _Sora paused in midstride and felt Roxas wince. _'I didn't mean that. I know I still have looks, I just - '_

"I know," Sora said gently. "It's fine Roxas. Besides, I remember you - you were cute. You probably would have been handsome if you had been a bit older - do Nobodies_get_ older? Well, you were good looking, whatever age you were."

He grinned, feeling the blush almost as if it were his own. Then Roxas said, _'Thank you,'_ and it was tinted with such emotion and feeling that Sora nearly winced. That might have been wrong to say to Roxas, who was hadn't had physical contact with anyone and was especially interested in Sora, for reasons neither understood - they were the same person now, despite the feeling of two different minds and emotions.

"Do you want to do gummi repairs?" He offered suddenly. He didn't regret it either, when he felt the shock followed by such gratitude that Sora felt wretched he hadn't offered more time to the boy in the past.

_'If you don't mind - the others could come back.'_

"We'll risk it," Sora said decisively, and leaned against the gummi ship. It took a minute or two to fully change - which he had decided to do, not just let Roxas look out from his eyes. It was even a bit painful, and Sora wasn't sure _how_ it could happen - but then, how Roxas had come to be had been a bit odd in the first place, and he and Naminé the only two Nobodies able to reunite with themselves fully.

When Roxas opened his eyes, he was still in the same clothes Sora had worn, but the wings on his back were gray now, and the mask on his head paler, and his skin resembling Riku's level of pale irridescence. That was fortunate - in their own clothes, those had changed as well from Sora's black to his white. But he wasn't here to stare at Sora's clothes, or his own. He should repair the gummi ship - it would be great, to be the one in control of a body. Sora didn't have to allow him this - he couldn't force it. The brunet had just offered one day, out of the blue.

He did that often, and Roxas was grateful. He walked around the gummi ship, waiting for Sora to stop him. He did, near the engines, and Roxas' eyes widened at the damage. "I didn't think it was this bad - I don't like to dip into your thoughts too much. I knew it was bad, but... didn't we have more engines than this?"

_'Yes,'_ Sora answered with a sigh. He knew why Roxas kept to his own thoughts, odd as it was to have two presences in their mind - he was afraid he and Sora would truly be just one mind if he did that to often. _'We had four.'_

"You shouldn't have let Riku have the controls, not his first run, not here," Roxas said critically. He didn't understand the things Sora did sometimes when it came to Riku - not the nice things, because he knew the boys loved each other, but the way Sora threw out all of the hints to Riku - and then pulled away.

_'He made it a challenge. You know how we are - I might turn around and go to Mulan's world and Beast's Castle after this. And if he made it through this run, he can drive the whole way there.' _Sora was skirting around an issue and Roxas smirked as he caught the edge of it.

"You just don't want to go to the Pride Lands and have Riku laugh at you," Roxas teased gently, working on replacing the engines and ducking underneath. It really was easier with the chipmunks and their fancier machinery, but he had Sora at hand, and his Other had become adept at field repairs.

_'I'd deny it, but it's a bit hard to lie to someone who's in my head,'_ Sora replied, and Roxas could feel him grinning - he wasn't sure how he knew it was a grin, but he could almost see the brunet next to him, eyes lit up and the large grin stretched across his face, hands at the back of his head. For a moment he closed his eyes, savoring the image that he could never actually see.

"You need to look in a mirror more often," he blurted out, and then quickly threw himself into repairing the gummy ship at Sora's delighted ringing laugh.

_'So you can look at me? Weeeell... I suppose it's not too bad of a reason, is it? I wish Riku would look at me and realize I've grown up.' _Roxas blinked at the apparent change of topic but kept his focus even as he replied.

"He does - I see how he looks at you," Roxas pointed out quietly.

_'Not really - He knows I've grown up physically, but the looks he gives me haven't changed much since I was fourteen - he just knows what he's doing more now. The thing is, so do I - probably better than he does.' _Sora sounded oddly smug at that point and Roxas skirted around the images that particular emotion brought up.

"Is that what it's about? I was wondering," Roxas said simply and felt Sora's affirmative response. Both were quiet - or Roxas was. Sora was humming in the back of his head, a Christmas song of some kind.

Then Sora suddenly laughed, _'I can't wait to see Riku's face when I introduce him to Santa. The liar.'_

Roxas smiled and decided not to point out that it wasn't as if Riku had know Santa Claus was real. Sora knew that. It would be fun to watch Sora dragging Riku over to Christmas Town. For all that Sora said he had matured, when it came to Santa Claus, he was a little kid again.

"Sora?" A familiar voice called. Roxas froze.

"Sora?" Riku called again, and Sora and Roxas cursed in unison. He was closer. Roxas closed his eyes trying to switch as quickly as possible. It wasn't that Sora exactly wanted to keep things like this from Riku. It was just this wasn't the best way to reveal that Roxas wasn't totally gone or banned from the physical world. Or even absorbed. At all.

"So-" Riku was standing there now, having just turned the corner of the gummi ship, and Roxas was jerked out of his concentration when he was spun around. His eyes snapped open and he met the harsh glare with one of his own, tensing up.

_'Roxas... Just stay calm. Riku won't do anything,'_ Sora soothed. He was much calmer than Roxas would have credited him for, but it trickled down to Roxas and the blond's glare softened slightly. This had the added bonus of confusing Riku long enough that Roxas could wrench his shoulder away and calmly turn back to repairing the gummi ship.

"Was there something you wanted?" Roxas asked, keeping his voice level. His feelings were very mixed on Riku, after all. He had been stolen by him, but that in turn had led to reunification with Sora, which was good - but Riku had caused his Other a lot of anguish when he refused to be found.

"Roxas," Riku growled. Probably unconsciously, Way to the Dawn was now clenched in his fist. Roxas resisted the urge to call both Oathkeeper and Oblivion in a childish need to show off.

"Riku," Roxas mocked, and felt Sora's mental sigh. Roxas flinched and sighed himself. He murmured, "You weren't supposed to find out about this. Not like this. Sora would have rather explained it later."

He felt Sora's rush of gratitude and was more than paid back for actually being something other than hostile to the silver-haired Keyblade warrior. Riku didn't seem to be happy with this development, however, and had his arms crossed over his chest. "What are you talking about? What have you done with Sora, Roxas?"

"Nothing," Roxas answered instantly. "He's here - we just switched for a few minutes."

Riku stared at him. Roxas continued the repairs. Sora silently comforted Roxas as his nerves jumped at every shift in Riku's weight. Finally, Riku asked, "How long has this been going on?"

Roxas paused and hesitated. He didn't actually remember. Sora prompted, _'Just say a few months. Best be vague.'_

Obviously Sora did remember the date but for some reason wasn't going to elaborate. Roxas shrugged. "A few months. We don't do it often."

Riku's eyes darkened and it was obvious he was struggling not to drop into sulking mode. "Why wasn't I told? Why do you two do this?"

"It's not _really_ necessary for you to know," Roxas snapped, irritated at his tone, "And as for why we do this..."

Roxas trailed off, and then shrugged. "Sora just offers sometimes when I'm feeling particularly... He just does."

_'The word is lonely Roxas - Riku will understand,'_ Sora told him confidently. Roxas had his doubts about that. Roxas wasn't sure what Riku thought of him - he knew now that Riku had been the man in black in the fake Twilight Town, but it was impossible to truly tell what Riku had felt at that time. The only thing ever clear with Riku was how he felt about his friends. He loved them - in very different ways, but it was there.

Riku was staring at him with a peculiar expression. "When you're what, Roxas?"

The blond frowned at the gentle, almost coaxing, tone. He turned his head, pretending to get a better look at the engines while really simply hiding his eyes. They gave away too much.

"Is it really lonely with Sora in there?" Riku asked, leaning against the gummi ship. Roxas flinched.

"Not... exactly. It's just... difficult. I can't touch Sora. I don't control anything - everything is second hand." Roxas snapped his jaw shut before he could say more. Riku didn't need to know this. No one needed to know this.

"Do Kairi and Naminé do this?"

"Not as far as we know," Roxas answered shortly, shrugging his shoulders. He wasn't totally surprised when Riku pulled him away from the gummi ship and spun him around.

"Stop avoiding my eyes. I'm not going to steal your soul," Riku said sharply. Roxas felt faintly amused.

"I have a gummi ship to repair," Roxas replied levelly. Riku narrowed his eyes.

"You're so difficult," Riku hissed, becoming angry. It wasn't often Riku was angry anymore and Roxas stepped away.

_'I didn't think he could be any sexier, but there he is, angry, and looking like some kind of vampire. It's a good thing you're in control. I might have jumped him,'_ Sora interjected quite cheerfully.

Roxas couldn't help the faint blush that rose to his cheeks as he choked and growled out a mortified, "Sora!"

_'What? Look at him. come on, just look up. If you think I'm good looking how can you think otherwise about Riku?'_ Sora didn't quite take control, but his presence was a heavy pressure on his mind and Roxas looked up to reluctantly meet Riku's curiousity filled eyes and quickly take in the older boy before averting his eyes, swearing at his counterpart mentally. Sora's chuckles were a bit wicked.

"What's he saying?" Riku asked finally, taking a step closer.

Roxas considered making up a lie, or side stepping the issue - but he felt the need to get back at Sora and answered, "How hot you are and how much he wants to jump you."

Roxas smirked at Riku's stunned expression and the sudden silence in his mind. Finally, blessed, all encompassing, silence. Still with a faint smirk, Roxas returned to his repairs, waiting for one or the other to recover. Riku was still hovering much too close, but by the way Riku was still frozen he was still going over the implications in his mind.

_'That was cruel,'_ Sora finally spoke up, though he didn't sound entirely serious. _'What if someone had said that to Axel about your thoughts?'_

"Then I would have gotten more than one kiss out of the deal before he died," Roxas snapped, nettled. He did regret sometimes that he hadn't paid more attention to Axel before being beaten and kidnapped. Sometimes he could barely remember what the kiss had felt like. It had been before meeting Riku, and hadn't been for long. They had never even spoken of it later.

"Axel?" Riku hazarded a guess at what he was responding about.

"Yes," Roxas said shortly. He wanted to take pity on the confused boy, but he was a bit angry now.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Roxas shot Riku an amused look. The words had sounded forced, and Riku was looking as if he wanted nothing more than to strangle himself for speaking them. It was nice of him to try, but Roxas just shook his head.

"It's important you're stable," Riku persisted.

"Because I can unbalance Sora? Whatever. Sora would be fine even if I was having a mental breakdown. He's too strong." Roxas was quite sure in this belief, though Sora's cheerful presence did dim as Roxas and Riku spoke.

_'I wouldn't be fine. I would be worried, and do everything I could to help. You're... me, Roxas, but you have your own mind and I can't even stand people in pain, how could I let someone suffer when I could feel it?' _Sora's thoughts had an emotional overtone of sadness that made Roxas feel extremly guilty.

"He wouldn't be fine. He cares too much," Riku said in an unconscious echo of Sora's thoughts. Actually, Roxas found that both mildly disturbing and quite charming when they did that, usually. Right now he was too busy trying to puzzle out Riku's thoughtful gaze to respond to the words.

"You and Axel," Riku prodded, apparently unwilling to give it up.

"We were best friends," Roxas bit off.

Riku gave him an amused look and said, "Sora's my best friend - that doesn't mean he's not something more as well."

Roxas flushed and snapped, "We didn't do anything!"

"Except kiss," Riku pointed out. "And I bet you wish it was more."

There wasn't much Roxas could say to that, and Sora's presence was like a warm comforting blanket in the back of his mind, relaxing him and calming his temper. "It doesn't matter now."

"If you say so." He was smirking at him. Roxas bristled. He had no idea how Sora could deal with him every day. He was so annoying.

"You know, I'm glad you and Sora aren't getting anywhere," He snapped. "You deserve it."

_'Roxas!'_ Sora sounded both upset and disappointed. It almost made Roxas flinch, but he kept his gaze on Riku, who had jerked back like someone had hit him.

"What would you know about?" Riku growled.

Roxas arched an eyebrow. "Everything, obviously."

"I don't care," Riku growled. "I'm glad he lets me touch him at all. It's not like I'm just in this to take his virginity."

"Already taken, so no worries there," Roxas retorted, his eyes flashing almost maliciously at Riku's frozen look.

_'Roxas! That's enough!'_ Sora's thoughts snapped across his, and he flinched - more at the regret Sora felt watching Riku's face grow hurt than at the anger directed toward him.

"I think I'll go now," He muttered, unwilling to apologize or to continue facing Riku. Considering Sora was just beneath the surface and practically pushing him back down, the transformation was strangely short – though more than a bit painful at the suddeness.

Sora stumbled and placed a hand against the engines, fighting off a wave of dizziness as Roxas faded from his awareness. He had no idea how the Nobody did that - he could never do it. But Roxas seemed almost as if he could just disappear into Sora - and yet still retain his identity when he wanted to talk. It was confusing.

_'Sorry.'_ He heard before he opened his eyes. The brunet sighed and tried to not be angry - but that wasn't something he had wanted Roxas to tell. He had wanted to do it himself, or have Riku ask, or realize it on his own.

Riku's was retreating - not physically, but emotionally and mentally. Sora could see it in his eyes. He ignored the repairs and where they were and everything else as he lunged a couple of steps forward to grab the taller boy's chin and make him look down, to meet his own blue eyes as he tried to convey love and caring and comfort as he growled, "It doesn't matter, Riku. It wasn't important."

Aqua eyes widened and then the boy was snarling at him, turning the tables and pressing him against the gummy ship while his eyes flashed in anger. "It doesn't matter? Then why didn't you tell me?"

"You didn't ask," Sora replied immediately. He knew that wasn't exactly the right thing to say, but it was the first thing that came to mind. Riku had him in a bruising grip and he wasn't afraid _of_ Riku, but he was afraid of what Riku would think, what he _was_ thinking, and tentatively reached out to lay a hand on his cheek. Riku batted it away and Sora sighed.

"Okay, okay, I'll bite," Sora breathed, "_Why_ is it important? Does it change anything about me? I'm still Sora."

Riku blinked, then stared, as if that wasn't what he had expected. He cocked his head, his eyes narrowed. "If it's not important you would have told us about it."

"No, if it was important I would have told you. I tell you two everything that's really important. This wasn't. It was a one-time thing because we were both lonely and he agreed that we would act as if it hadn't happened. So it didn't." It wasn't that simple. Nothing ever was, but Sora wasn't going to complicate it with details of how awkward it had been. But Riku seemed surprised at something else he had said, successfully derailing his anger.

"He?" Riku questioned, tilting his head, and Sora stared a moment. He had thought that would have been obvious – not because he wasn't as attracted to girls as he was to boys, he was. But the way Riku had been talking and how Roxas had snapped back – then again, as observant as Riku was, he often made the wrong conclusion with his observations.

"He. A guy." Sora made sure to keep it vague – he had absolutely no reason to tell Riku who it was and cause more problems for all of them. Riku didn't need to know.

"When? Before or after you went to sleep?" Riku demanded, seeming upset again. Sora almost choked at the question.

"After! It was a bit after my sixteenth birthday. C'mon Riku, I was fourteen when we left the island and I blushed at simple touches outside of battle half the time!" In fact, he knew he was blushing now and was relieved that it didn't show as much on his altered skin tone.

"Are you sure you still don't?" Riku teased, apparently willing to drop the subject for now in favor of a more pleasant past time. He put a hand on Sora's arm meaningfully and Sora could have sworn the apparently dormant Roxas was laughing at him when he did in fact go against everything he had been trying to prove and blushed brighter. He almost wanted to pout. He hadn't had this much trouble in Atlantica.

"Come on," Sora said, deciding they needed a distraction soon. "I have something to show you since I'm _obviously_ not going to get any more repairs done."

With that said, he grabbed Riku's wrist and proceeded to pull him along, ignoring the fact that the taller boy stumbled a bit at the sudden movement. Served him right. Sora did let him go when they came near the graveyard and they hopped the fence. Sora head to the left, grinning as the strange trees came into view.

"Where did you leave Kairi, anyway?" Sora asked as he headed directly toward the tree with a tree shaped door cut into it.

"We found Jack. I wanted to see if you needed help with the repairs since I caused all the damage," Riku replied, looking around and attempting to be casual about it. Sora grinned and leaned against the entrance to Christmas Town.

"We'll backtrack and do some of the easier routes. There aren't many Heartless around right now so it doesn't matter what order we go in, right?" Sora had been a bit surprised that there were so few Heartless. They had encountered a few small groups, but no Nobodies and everything was easily defeated. It made him suspicious and he tried not to be paranoid but everytime he stared at the stars he could almost see the darkness nibbling at them. No matter how much he tried to say it was in his head, it didn't help.

Riku shrugged in response to his question, his long strides closing the space between them quickly as he peered at the door and answered absently, "Does't matter to me. You probably should have done Land of the Dragons before this one, at least. I don't know about the Gummi route but I know the Heartless types there were usually weaker than the ones at Hollow Bastion."

"Radiant Garden," Sora corrected automatically as he straightened and pushed away from the door, opening it and gesturing Riku in. "Shall we?"

Riku frowned at him, his eyes moving from him to the open space suspiciously as he leaned in. "What's in here?"

"Find out!" Sora shifted forward before he was done speaking, knowing it took a lot to surprise Riku. He was right – despite his surprise, Riku still managed to turn as he lost his balance and pull a laughing Sora after him.

Riku's grip tightened on him when no ground became apparent and Sora hesitated before getting a good grip on Riku's shoulders and slowing their fall. Gliding was harder with more than twice the weight, but at least it was more controlled now.

"Don't _do _that, Sora!" Riku said sharply once he realized they weren't going to fall to their death.

"Trust me. I wouldn't have pushed you into anything dangerous. Look, once we're through this – " He gestured to the swirls of white and blue around them. " – We'll be there."

"Where?" Riku demanded, pulling him closer to glare into his eyes. Sora was immune to that type of intimidation by now and raised an unimpressed eyebrow.

"Somewhere I've been wanting to show you – and Kairi – since Jack first showed it to me," Sora explained, his voice soft and warm. RIku's glare melted into a confused look and it was obvious that Riku didn't quite know what to do now.

"See, look, we're about there," Sora pointed out suddenly – and let them drop. Before Riku could do more than tighten his grip they were tumbling out into the snow. Immediately Riku swore in surprise as the ice hit his bare arms.

"Huh. Not the best clothes to be wearing here. I probably should have thought to bring coats." Sora frowned slightly at his oversight as he rolled to his feet. Riku glared at him a moment before doing the same, flecks of ice flying from his silver hair.

"Now can I know where we are?" If Sora hadn't know better, he would have thought Riku was whining. It was an easy enough decision after that.

"We're in Christmas Town," Sora chirped, and waited as the realization sunk in.

"Sora, are you saying…?" Riku stared down at the town below, unable to actually think that what Sora was hinting at and blatantly showing him was true.

"You lied to me, you know. You told me there was no Santa Claus. You really shouldn't lie like that," Sora said, faking a scolding tone. Riku stared at him blankly as if unable to comprehend his words. Grinning, Sora grabbed his wrist and dragged him down to the town.

Riku was a dead weight most of the way there. Sora was half wondering if he had managed to break his friend when they walked into the square outside of the workshop and saw a rotund man in a red suit and a long white beard talking quite firmly to a red nosed reindeer who was looking quite abashed.

"Fuck," Riku muttered a bit too loudly. That seemed to get the man's attention and Santa Claus turned toward them, his expression disapproving – though he seemed to be willing to forget it when he saw Sora practically bouncing in glee next to the blank-faced young man.

"Sora, it's quite good to see you again! And this, of course, would be Riku. I see you found him. Showing him around, are you?" Santa Claus seemed rather amused by Riku's blatant staring now, but turned back to the reindeer to continue his lecture.

Sora beamed at Riku. Riku slowly turned and stared back. "Santa Claus."

"Yup!" Sora let go of Riku's wrist and place his hands behind his head casually. "I helped him out last year. Maleficient caused some trouble, and then a creation gone wrong."

Sora's smile flickered just briefly as he remembered why it had gone berserk. It had been like the Nobodies in that way, yearning for something out of its reach and trying to take it by force.

"So it wasn't just our parents?" Riku wondered out loud.

"Well, it was after you made me believe he didn't exist," Sora grumbled. Then he brightened again. "Except last year, I got a present that I didn't know where it came from and it was from _him_!"

His father had been on a business trip. His mother… Well, when she had remembered Sora again, she hadn't taken the fact that she had forgotten her own son very well. Not even Kairi knew where she had gone. So Sora had a few presents his Dad had sent and his friends had given him – and a present from Santa Claus. It hadn't been anything big, just a new chain for his crown necklace. But his other one had managed to break just days before. Sora suspected that the new chain would never break.

"Oh," Riku responded. Sora glanced at him and chuckled. It was always fun to totally surprise Riku. He had rarely seen him this surprised.

"Sora!" The boy blinked as another familiar voice called him and he and Riku turned to watch Kairi running up, Jack and Sally trailing behind her. "Why didn't you tell me, you jerk?"

"Jerk!" Sora protested automatically. "I just wanted it to be a surprise!"

Kairi huffed, but then her attention was caught by Santa Claus, who had turned toward them, smiling as he watched. "Oh! I'm sorry!"

"It's quite alright. Would all of you like to come inside?" He was answered with five joyful affirmatives. Sora hung back slightly as the other four crowded into Santa's house and the Factory. He watched Riku and Kairi and felt Roxas stir to watch from his eyes. They looked happy. And that was all that mattered.

* * *

End Chapter Two. 

Please Review.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

* * *

Chapter 3 - Beast's Castle

Kairi, upon landing in the Parlor, was overjoyed. She would get to see one of the other Princesses again. She hadn't spent any time with them before… But she always felt a connection tug at her heart whenever Sora had spoken of them. They had a connection that the light gave them. Riku was studying their surroundings and still keeping track of exactly where she and Sora were at any given moment. There was no one in the Parlor, and Sora was frowning slightly as if this was unexpected.

The red head looked toward the partly open door as Riku studied the room and Sora seemed to be considering something as she stepped out. Her eyes immediately traveled up toward the high ceiling. It was beautiful – not that Hollow Bastion hadn't been - but now it was in ruin, and she barely remembered it from when they had run through it… Or from when she had been a child. She knew she had lived there then, but she didn't truly remember it, even after having been there.

"Oh! Hello. You were Sora's friend," A new voice said and Kairi whirled around to see a woman descending the stairs, clad in a simple blue and white outfit. Kairi stared for a moment, feeling her heart suddenly seem to match a new beat. Shaking off the new sensation, Kairi smiled.

"Kairi. I'm Kairi. Sora and Riku are – "

"Right behind you," Riku spoke up suddenly, his voice amused. Kairi jumped, and sent both boys a glare. They were automatically quiet most of the time now when they moved, and most of the time she could sort of feel them – but she had been so focused on the woman on the stairs that she hadn't noticed their presence.

"Hello Sora. It's good to see you! Kairi, Riku, I don't know if either of you caught my name. I'm Belle." She was coming down the stairs slowly, and Kairi was glad she didn't seem to show any anger towards Riku. The boy tended to go off and brood whenever he was reminded too sharply of what he had done.

Kairi didn't respond immediately, too busy watching Belle. There was something strange in the way she walked, carefully and her balance a bit different. Then the railing no longer obstructed Kairi's view and her eyes widened at the protruding middle. Immediately her smile spread into a happy grin. "Congratulations!"

"Kairi, what do you… Oh." Kairi didn't need to turn around to know that Sora was wearing a stunned expression on his face. Riku had probably blinked and was processing it.

"Thank you. It's only a couple more months now," Belle responded warmly. "Sora, the Prince is in the West Wing discussing some responsibilities with our friends, if you want to go see him."

Kairi knew that she was giving Sora a way out from what he probably considered an awkward situation. She hid her giggles behind her hand as Sora babbled something that sounded like he was thanking her and then jumped up to an entrance that Kairi had to presume went to the West Wing. She turned to look at Riku curiously. He was looking slightly uncomfortable.

"You can go as well. There aren't any Heartless in the castle at the moment, and I doubt you would be interested in two women talking." Belle was smiling knowingly at the silver haired boy. He ducked his head and Kairi's giggles came back as he answered, "Thank you, ma'am."

"Just Belle," She responded, and Riku nodded in response as he took the stairs, following Sora's path at a much more reserved pace. Once out of sight, Kairi grinned at Belle.

"Boys," She said, rolling her eyes. Belle laughed.

"They're young, and Sora at least doesn't seem to realize half the time when he's being impolite. I don't think either of them were ever taught manners the way I was – or the way you were when you were young." Belle's expression was soft, but Kairi could tell she was serious, and that she knew something.

"I don't remember being taught them. I just know sometimes how to respond. We haven't really been caught in anything too formal, but in Atlantica… I don't even know how I know what to say and how to behave. I just do." Kairi shifted her weight, knowing she was showing exactly how uncomfortable she was in the conversation.

Belle smiled in understanding. "I found pictures of you, hidden in some books in the library there. From when you were young, It wasn't hard to put together."

There was silence after that, and Kairi couldn't think of a thing to say to that. Finally, Belle broke it. "Would you like to come up to my old room? If you and the boys stay long, you can stay there. I'm not sure where we'll put the boys yet –"

"Oh, we can sleep in the same room. We have before, usually we end up doing it in the gummi ship. It's easier that putting one of us alone anyway. Sometimes we have nightmares, and I like to be there for the boys." Not that they truly needed her when either of them usually woke up whenever the other made a noise that disturbed the night too much – but they did want her there. That had been proved in Atlantica when both had creeped into her room, looking disturbed and nightmare ridden, and settled on her bed the instant she moved over to give them room.

"Well, I'll suggest it, but it might be considered inappropriate," Belle offered, searching her face for something. Kairi decided it would be more polite if she didn't mentioned that it would be even more inappropriate to leave Riku and Sora in a room together alone for a week – presuming they stayed in the castle the normal amount of time.

"I know it may seem that way, but really it's not. I promise that nothing will happen." Nothing between her and them anyway, which she was glad of now. Riku had grown to be devastatingly handsome, and Sora was charming, but she liked them better as friends. They still both had her heart, but she liked being their friend and confidant better than Sora's girlfriend or someone just to protect. Not that she still didn't need protection – but she was determined to work on that.

"Follow me then. Do you have any luggage?" Belle was making her way back up the stairs and to the right. Kairi followed, matching her pace and staying behind the lady of the castle.

"On the gummi ship. There are usually a few places in the worlds Sora visited where we can transport up to the gummi ship and bring down what we need for our stay." Kairi smiled, but inwardly she was glad that they wouldn't be sleeping in the gummi ship. Sora seemed to have no problems with it, but what they used as beds were really just small cots squished into one side room off the cockpit. For Riku, she knew he disliked it because there was nowhere to be alone. She simply wasn't used to the confining space. Sora had none of their problems.

"I think there is actually one in my old room. Easy that way, isn't it?" Belle led the way down a hallway as the stairs ended. Kairi peeked a look at her stomach, unable to not be fascinated a bit. It was kind of heartening to think that the people who had endured battles and seen Sora fight had moved on, no one was stuck in their lives. One of her fellow Princesses was having a baby.

"He kicks sometimes," Belle offered and Kairi blushed as she realized she had been caught.

Then her attention was caught and she asked, "He does? And how do you know it's a boy?"

"He does. And I don't. It might be a girl. But I'm not going to call him an it. We decorated the nursery in neutral colors." Kairi watched Belle's face light up and suddenly felt an ache in her heart. She probably would never have that. There would be no small her and her love walking around… and no tiny Riku and Sora's. Even if she had managed to love one of them more romantically and he had her, that would still leave one of them out. She firmly shoved that thought out of her mind and pasted on a smile as Belle opened the door.

It was a lovely room, and Kairi was determined to keep her thoughts going in that direction. She looked at the bed and smiled, stepping in and brushing her hand lightly over the bureau and a mirror. "It's lovely."

"Thank you. The Prince gave it to me when I was first here. It might be a bit small for all three of you." Kairi kept her smile on and felt a mixture of amusement and annoyance. She knew Belle really didn't think two boys should be alone in a room with one girl. But she couldn't explain it to her. It wouldn't have made sense to anyone but them.

"We'll manage. The room we sleep in on the gummi ship is much smaller," Kairi responded.

"I see you're not going to give in. Okay. I'll stop. Now, since I promised talk, how has it been traveling with those two?" Belle sat on the edge of the bed and patted the spot next to her. Kairi gladly took it, rolling her eyes and for some reason, feeling completely at ease with telling Belle what she wanted to know.

"It depends. I've been advised before that living with your friends is a bit different but sometimes… They're such _boys_. I love being near them all the time, but Riku's version of cleaning up is to kick things into the corner and while Sora knows how to clean better, he tends to forget to and every surface off the floor is usually covered with something of his. And hinting doesn't work most of the time with him and Riku smirks and pretends he doesn't understand. But at the same time… Messy as they are, they're also…" Kairi trailed off, blushing as she realized she had been venting more than she should have in the presence of a virtual stranger.

"They're also… What, Kairi?" Belle was looking at her intently and Kairi sighed.

"There. Always nearby and constantly aware. I love them both, but sometimes I wish I could do more for them, fight better. We haven't had any problems, but I don't want to be a burden for them. They never leave me alone – if I'm not with them, I have to be with someone they think they can trust. They've changed, Belle. I knew they had, but we're living together in such a small space… I've caught Riku half-awake still shouting from a nightmare and Sora too still for him to be having a pleasant sleep. None of us are children anymore, but I didn't realize how much of our childhood they lost. I can never keep up when they really try – I can't even keep them in sight." Kairi realized she was pouring her heart out but she couldn't help it. There was just something about Belle that made her want to automatically trust her. She wondered if it was Belle, or the fact they were both Princesses of Heart.

"So what are you going to do?" Belle had her head tilted and a small smile was on her face. Kairi blinked and thought that she couldn't have been _that_ transparent.

"I'm going to fight. We've stopped on different worlds and I'm trying to learn magic. So far I've just learned two. Cure – it's not even as strong as Sora's – and Light Flare. I had never heard of that one before. I was taking lessons from Minnie. Really, it reminds me of the opposite of one of Riku's moves. It's just light instead of… dark." She squirmed a bit, as she always did when admitting to anyone else about Riku's abilities. She didn't mind them – but she hated to think either of her boys were being judged because of it.

_'It doesn't matter. They saved all these worlds. Riku doesn't care what anyone thinks except you and Sora,'_ Naminé murmured in her mind. The Nobody was usually quiet, but Kairi had become used to her suddenly speaking up out of nowhere, especially if it was about her friends.

"See? That's a start. What about a weapon?" Belle looked fascinated with what she was telling her and Kairi had to wonder if she had ever wanted to fight like Kairi now did.

"I don't know. I borrowed a Keyblade from Riku, but what if we're separated? I can't always do that. Aerith used a staff, but that just doesn't seem right to me. I haven't found my weapon yet." Kairi looked down, one hand playing with the bedcovers as she peeked up at Belle. The woman seemed thoughtful.

"Tomorrow, would you like to check out the armory? Maybe you'll see a fitting weapon there." Kairi's head snapped up and her lips stretched into a delighted smile. She knew – they both knew – that Princesses weren't supposed to fight. But that wouldn't stop Kairi, and obviously Belle approved.

"And I won't tell the boys either. We'll let that be a surprise when you're ready." Belle's eyes twinkled in understanding as she spoke and Kairi was about to express her gratitude when above them she heard noises. She raised an eyebrow at Belle, who looked suddenly wary – until familiar laughter sounded.

"I'll see what they're doing," Kairi murmured as she walked over and opened up doors to a balcony, trying to look up. All she heard was Riku muttering something, sounding annoyed and mock-angry, and Sora_sounding_ nervous – but Kairi could hear the barely contained amusement in his voice, even if she couldn't make out the words.

"And where are you going to go now?" She heard Riku say as Sora's feet came into view at one corner of the slanted roof. "That's the end."

"Maybe if I were you," Sora said smugly, and Kairi rolled her eyes. She knew exactly where this was going. "But I'm not! Bye, Riku!"

And, as she had suspected, he jumped off the edge of the roof. Riku swore and bounded to the edge, looking angrily down after the falling boy – and that little dash of fear. She understood that. She always feared that despite Sora constantly showing off his abilities, there would just be this one time where they failed. In fact, even though Sora waved to her on his way down, she couldn't help following Riku's example as she rushed to the edge of the balcony and stared down as Sora continued falling.

Just moment before he hit the ground she saw his progression suddenly stall until he floated down until he was hovering just above the ground. Riku growled from above her and she glanced up at him. "I'm going to burn those clothes one day."

"I don't think it would help," She offered.

"Maybe not. But it's their fault he learned to do that." Wisely, Kairi decided that silence was the best option as Riku hopped down to her balcony and glared at the spiky-haired figure moving back inside the castle. "And I think I'll chain him to the ground."

"And what lock are you going to find that he can't get out of, Riku?" She pointed out, smiling as he paused.

"I won't use a lock," Riku decided, and flashed her a smug grin. "Gotta go. Time for revenge."

Kairi should have been worried by the slightly malicious look on Riku's face, but in the end she decided Sora had whatever the other boy planned coming. Riku exited the room with only a casual acknowledgement of Belle.

"I see what you mean about them," Belle said, and Kairi turned with a quizzical look on her face. Belle added, complete with a mocking roll of her eyes and a giggle, "_Boys_."

Kairi blushed, but had to agree.

* * *

Kairi had carefully hidden the daggers Belle had let her take under her pillow on the gummi ship. She had become friends with all of the castle servants pretty quickly, and knew Belle and the Prince were deeply in love. And for the first time in the whole journey, and definitely in the three days they had been there, Kairi was alone in the castle.

She wasn't stupid. She wasn't about to go wandering beyond the walls just because she had no protector for once. That was asking for something to go wrong. Instead she picked out some books from the library and looked for a place she wouldn't be bothered. Some relaxation would do her good.

The boys were outside sparring, and she finally decided on the balcony, where she could sit and read – and watch them spar. They were engrossed enough that they didn't feel her eyes on them if she didn't stare too hard, and that meant she was more likely to see them really sparring. Which was true, as they both had Keyblades out, though Sora had his down to its natural Kingdom Key state. The Kingdom Key was the simplest of them, but she always thought it looked good – and certainly better than Oblivion, which was dark and reminded her of the darkness more than a Keyblade should. Ultima was much better and Kairi had never been more relieved to see Sora change Keychains than when he had exchanged Oblivion for Ultima.

She blinked up from her book an hour in at some noise and carefully folded the book around one finger as she leaned to look between the rails. She smiled softly at the sight. Riku and Sora seemed to be on a break, and when Riku had lain down in the courtyard Sora had unceremoniously draped himself over Riku's stomach "accidentally" driving an elbow into his ribs when the taller boy complained about his weight.

Kairi caught only bits and pieces of the conversation after that, but she didn't need to hear what was being said to know how it was going to end. And within two or three minutes, the boys were wrestling in the open courtyard. Sora's slim frame gave him a disadvantage despite the fact he could probably match Riku in terms of strength – Riku had height and build over him, so while their spars with blades usually favored Sora a bit more, wrestling matches usually favored Riku. Not that Riku always won, Sora was a fast and slippery boy. But once Kairi saw Riku manage to get Sora on his back for more than a few seconds, she knew it was only a matter of time.

After watching them, she had to grin and wonder just how much more they enjoyed it now that they were being more open with each other.

_'Kairi!'_Naminé gasped – and then giggled as Sora's irritated growl of anger was audible even from their position. _'Think he makes those noises in bed?'_

Unlike Naminé, Kairi had to muffle her laughter, and her book was forgotten as she clapped a hand to her mouth and watched Sora attempt to kick Riku off. Riku responded by sitting on the boy's stomach holding off the wrists trying to attack him. He said something, and Kairi could clearly hear the gloating tone. Sora grumbled and squirmed a bit – but eventually gave in.

Except Riku didn't move off and Kairi tilted her head as he leaned down, raising an eyebrow. Apparently she hadn't been the only one with suggestive thoughts as they wrestled.

She watched their lips meet – and watched as they shifted until they were both sitting up and Sora was the one taking control of the kiss. Kairi decided that she could read in their room after that. She felt left out sometimes when they were together – but at that moment, all she could feel was that they deserved as much privacy as she could give them in the few moments they had like that. Totally spontaneous and definitely them.

She had almost finished the book when Sora came into their room and flopped down on the bed next to her – they had decided they only needed one cot since the bed was big enough for two of them, and had also decided, without needing to say a word, that Sora was sleeping on the floor. Riku probably still didn't totally trust them together – and probably thought she thought the same about him. But in reality, it was Sora she didn't trust with Riku. Now that he was allowed to, she was sure that Sora would surprise Riku at every turn.

"Whatcha reading?" He asked, and she calmly put a bookmark down, knowing by his tone and the grin on his face that she was not going to be getting any more reading done. Sora was feeling mischievous. Two could play at that.

"Just a book from the library. Did you have fun with Riku this afternoon?" Kairi grinned as Sora looked startled for a moment, his mouth open in surprise – and then recovered himself remarkably well with a sheepish smile.

"You could hear us sparring? Sorry if we disturbed you." He did in fact look apologetic. She grinned, perfectly ready to tease him mercilessly.

"Oh, I couldn't hear you that well, but I was reading on the balcony and I could certainly see you." She watched him struggle and fail to defeat the blush rising on his face. She giggled and added, "Don't worry, I went inside when it looked like you two were having a personal moment."

At Sora's embarrassed but relieved look she couldn't help but adding, "It looked like he was enjoying it anyway. But you do have a talented tongue."

"Kai-_ri_," Sora whined, flushing even brighter. Her giggles went to full out laughter. She had complimented him on it enough when they had been together – apparently he wasn't quite ready to be teased about it when it came to Riku.

"Okay, I'll stop. For now. Besides, if you're here Riku's sure to follow eventually and I don't want to ruin his good mood. He gets jealous sometimes when I tease you too much." She smiled and he answered with his own quick one. He understood, but Sora almost always did, and when he didn't he at least tried to.

"Maybe not jealous anymore, but he can get uneasy. He'll get used to it eventually. He's just still unsure when it comes to me and him and me and you." He grinned and added with a twinkle in his blue eyes, "I'm doing my best to correct him."

"I noticed," She replied slyly. They looked at each other for a moment before he began to laugh, setting her off as well.

"What'd I miss?" A familiar voice asked – except obviously neither of them had been expecting it and Sora yelped and twisted to look – and fell off the edge of the bed. Kairi couldn't help but snicker again.

"Graceful, Sora. Very nice," Riku said, clapping his hand slowly.

"It's your fault," Sora muttered, shooting Riku a glare.

Kairi cleared her throat, moving the attention to her. "Well, it's not his fault you didn't catch yourself. What happened to your coordination?"

She too was gifted with a fierce blue-eyed glare – thankfully not an angry one. It made her giggle a bit, instead of sending chills down her spine – somehow since his first journey began he had learned how to glare and when Sora was angry, even Riku took notice.

"And what about your coordination, Kairi?" Sora asked slyly. She didn't like the mischievous look on his face.

"What do you – SORA!" She shrieked as the comforter she was sitting on was suddenly pulled up and away from her, effectively sending her tumbling over the other side.

"Hey! Now I think that's a bit unfair, don't you, Kairi?" Riku glanced at her, a smirk firmly on his face. An impish grin spread across her lips.

"Very unfair." They glanced back to a suddenly nervous looking Sora.

Riku calmly stated, "Get him," and pounced. Kairi scrambled over the bed to join him as Sora jumped backwards – into the wall. It was a simple matter for Riku to pull Sora's feet out from under him and allow both of them to pin the boy at that point.

"Not fair!" Sora complained, and Kairi's lips twitched as she tried to match Riku's serious expression. They all knew Sora could have had them off in an instant – but this was for fun, so he had the limits of not being able to use anything but his strength, which Riku at least could counter.

Deciding Riku could deal with his struggles, Kairi slipped her hands between them to attack Sora's ribs with gentle fingers. His eyes grew alarmed. "Hey! No tickling!"

"Too late!" Riku returned as Sora began to squirm thanks to Kairi's fingers. They were in an odd position, Riku keeping Sora down while allowing Kairi enough space to get at Sora's ribs. It figured it would be then that someone walked in on them.

They did hear the door opening and all three automatically tried to get up – but when three people all attempt to get up at once in the same area, it doesn't work out well. Sora let out a grunt as Kairi in her rush to take her hands away, caused Riku to fall back down and take her with them.

"You two need to lose some weight," Sora commented, craning his neck to try and see who was looking at them and their tangle of limbs. Kairi sighed and stayed still, copying Sora's movement while Riku extracted himself from them and stepped away to look at the door.

Belle stood there, trying to peek around Riku as she put a hand to her mouth to stop herself from giggling. Riku, ever the headstrong one, shifted to block Kairi and Sora even further. Kairi carefully stood and took a step back, lending Sora a hand as he started to get up.

"Are you three having fun?" Belle asked, shifting her weight to lean against the door and her hand moving from her face to brush back some hair instead. Kairi leaned around Riku to grin at her, waving at Sora behind Riku's back to move to his other side. His face was screaming, "SULK" to her experienced eyes.

Sora placed a hand on Riku's elbow as he obeyed Kairi's hand signal and grinned at Belle. "Thanks Belle. You saved me from an untimely death by tickling."

"Evil everywhere would have just given up if the news ever got out," Belle returned, grinning at the three. "But for what I came up for – would you three like to have a party? A dinner and dance are scheduled tomorrow. Most of the townsfolk will be there. I don't know if you have any formal attire with you."

Kairi knew for a fact they did. She had made sure they packed it herself. And checked their bags. Three times – and twice more after catching Riku trying to casually throw his formal clothes out the airlock. "We'll be there. We have some formal wear on the gummi ship."

She ignored their horrified expressions. Belle pretended not to see it. They shared a private smile between them before Belle left Kairi to her boys.

* * *

Kairi was in blue. Sora was in white. Riku was in black. It was the only thing she could acknowledge the hour before the party. She had known her boys could be exasperating, but in the name of Light, it was just_formal_ wear. She hadn't even known Riku knew could whine that well. And Sora was still giving her his kicked puppy routine.

After carefully sitting down in the chair by the window – and scolding the boys when they tried to flop down onto the bed (Sora), when they fiddled with the buttons (Sora again), and when they attempted to attack each other (Riku). Riku leaned against the wall and sulked while Sora fidgeted with the gold buttons on his shirt.

She admired them both. They weren't exactly what this world would use as formal wear, but it wasn't too much like Destiny Islands either – she had tried to get all three of them formal suits that could be used anywhere. Of course, that wasn't possible, but at least they could simply be addressed as being foreign and they wouldn't be too out of place.

Kairi's dress was a soft and a deep blue with just a slight trail and long sleeves. She knew she would probably look simple compared to Belle, but both of her boys had, despite their sulking and whining, seen fit to compliment her on it.

She knew Sora was uncomfortable in the pure white – it wasn't anything he was used to wearing. But she didn't want to wear white – and she felt guilty about the reason as her mind whispered about a blonde girl in a simple white dress. But Sora did look good, gold buttons running down the front and gold trim at his collar the cuffs of his sleeves and pant legs. His crown necklace gleamed silver against his shirt.

Riku was too poetic for words, wearing a matching style to Sora except in black with silver. He had been lacking a necklace until Kairi had decided he needed one – and asked Sora to provide a keychain for the night. Riku had refused point blank to wear most of them, and Way to the Dawn's – so Sora took off Oblivion's crown shaped keychain, put it on a silver metal chain Kairi had, and tossed it to Riku. Kairi had thrown up her hands at that point. At least they sort of matched that way.

"I wonder if this works on Way to the Dawn?" Riku wondered out loud, holding up the black crown. Kairi and Sora both glared at him. "What?"

"It's_mine_," Sora muttered childishly.

"Way to the Dawn seems different than Kingdom Key, and they're both the basic Keyblade – I don't think the keychains are interchangeable for the two," Kairi responded more sensibly.

"Be a good experiment," Riku said hopefully.

"No," Sora said firmly, and stared at Riku for the longest time as if he was sending a telepathic message. If he was, Riku seemed to hear it because he let the chain fall back to his chest with a shrug.

There were a few minutes of silence. Then, "Can we go yet?"

"Why? Are you eager to make a fool of yourself? They're going to make us dance, you know." Riku shot a glare toward Kairi, clearly blaming her for this.

"I can dance," Sora stated confidently. Kairi stared at him. She had never seen him dance before. When could he have learned this?

"No you can't," Riku scoffed. "I'd know."

Sora smiled slyly, ducking his head just a bit away from Riku as he did so the other boy couldn't see it. Kairi raised an eyebrow, her curiosity aroused. Sora challenged, "Wanna bet?"

"Sure," Riku answered easily. "If I win, I get to try the Oblivion chain on my Keyblade. And if you win – "

"You owe me a chance to order you to do whatever I want. Or ask anything. Just once." His eyes were gleaming. Riku was scowling, but Kairi already knew what the answer would be.

"Deal," Riku said crisply.

* * *

Later, when Riku had decided he could sleep in the gummi ship without Sora – who had obviously cheated somehow – and Kairi – who couldn't stop laughing – the red head turned to her friend and tilted her head. "So, how did you do it anyway? Who taught you?"

"Well… Promise not to tell Riku?" Sora was looking a little guilty, and she had to wonder if he really had cheated somehow.

"Okay. I have a feeling it isn't anything really important, right?" She tried to look in his eyes, but he was glancing away, and fidgeting nervously.

"Demyx taught Roxas to dance." Sora flushed under her incredulous look. "It's not exactly cheating. Roxas just let me borrow his knowledge, that's all."

"Sora! I doubt that would pass by Riku's definition of cheating." But she grinned, because now she knew Roxas did talk to Sora, and that was worth the price – and, really, it would be amusing to see what Sora came up with for Riku when he called in the debt.

"So? He won't know. And what he doesn't know – "

"Can't hurt you," Kairi finished with a playful smile. Sora shrugged, and went to change out of his formal clothes while Kairi lay on her back, having already changed and put her dress back properly on the gummi ship. She had been a little hesitant about taking this trip – it was summer on Destiny Islands, but she was afraid the boys would miss more school anyway if they were gone too long. But now – she was glad. Sora and Riku seemed happier, and she had actually met and talked to Belle once more.

Anything was worth time with her friends while they were happy. Despite the ill feeling that something bad was lurking out there, none of them had seen even one sign of it. Kairi put it out of her mind, determined to enjoy the rest of their journey.

* * *

End Chapter Three. 

Please Review.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

* * *

Chapter 4 - Agrabah

A sea of sand surrounded Agrabah that, if Riku squinted, he could almost believe belonged on the beach at home. If it weren't for the dry heat in the air and the lack of water anywhere except in jars. He almost wanted to find out where the water they had came from instead of walking to the palace with his friends where he would most certainly be attacked once Jasmine recognized him.

He had argued for Land of the Dragons, but Kairi wanted to visit the other Princesses of Heart – or at least the ones she could. Sora had stayed out of it altogether, and Riku sent him another glare to remind him he did not appreciate the lack of back up. Sora caught it and smiled apologetically – and rolled his eyes as Riku turned his head away. The taller boy caught in from the corner of his eyes and ground his teeth. He was _not_ being childish about it. He didn't see why he had to go anyway. Kairi's idea that he _had_ to apologize was silly.

"There it is!" Kairi exclaimed as the Palace gate came into view. "I hope they're home!"

Riku looked at the setting sun in the west and rolled his eyes when he was sure Kairi wouldn't see him. One was a princess. Where else would she be once it started becoming dark? She probably wasn't allowed to wander about alone even during the day – once it started getting dark she was sure to be kept inside the palace walls, boyfriend with a genie or not.

"I'm sure they are, Kairi," Sora offered agreeably. He had briefly stopped to look at part of one wall where a space had been taken out and a wooden pole went up into a building. Riku cocked his head, wondering what was up there that had Sora looking like he wanted to shimmy up.

"It will be fun to visit the palace. I hope Jasmine doesn't mind if I take up some of her time this week. I have some questions I want to ask her." Riku grimaced as Kairi spoke. He didn't want to make Kairi unhappy, but he really didn't want to spend all his time cooped up in the palace.

Sora seemed to agree. "Hey, Kairi, you don't mind if we don't spend the whole week there, do you? I mean, you don't have to come if you want to stay, but actually I wanted to show you two the rest of Agrabah, and the Cave of Wonders."

Riku paused and shot a questioning look at Sora, who nodded in return. So, that was what that cave was called. Well, he supposed he could explore different areas there – he hadn't exactly been sightseeing the first time he had gone through it. And well… a little treasure never hurt anyone.

Kairi paused and looked at them both. Riku felt distinctly as if she was reading their minds when she stared into his eyes for a few moments. Finally she stepped back from peering at them and smiled. "Boring for you two to be standing around all the time, isn't it?"

"Yes," Riku answered, smirking, before Sora could try and wiggle his way into giving an answer that wasn't really an answer at all. Sora shot him a sour look that told Riku that he had indeed been planning on trying to make Kairi feel better about them wanting to explore without actually lying.

"Okay, but you have to promise me one thing." She looked at them expectantly. Riku raised an eyebrow and clapped a hand on Sora's shoulder to stop him from agreeing.

"You have to spend at least one day in the city with me." She smiled, and despite the look in her eyes, Riku relaxed. That wasn't hard at all. He still liked spending time with Kairi, but maybe she needed to be reminded of that.

"Sure," Sora answered for them both, and then added with a knowing sigh. "Why?"

Riku blinked, shooting him a look. That wasn't like Sora, why would he act like that when Kairi just wanted to – "Shopping. You two have all of our munny."

Oh.

"Glad to know we're useful, Kairi," Riku responded dryly.

"Aw, come on Riku, you'll enjoy it! We can get you two some desert clothes, and take home some souvenirs…" Kairi trailed off meaningfully and Riku contemplated dropping all of his pride and running away like a little girl. He regarded Sora and his resigned expression for a minute and reluctantly decided he wouldn't be able to do that. He couldn't leave Sora alone to face Kairi and shopping. Besides, he should at least see how his munny was going to be spent.

They were almost to the gate when familiar dark portals appeared. All three of them stepped back in surprise as a pack of Heartless appeared. Riku didn't even wait to fully recognize what they were before calling Way to the Dawn and throwing himself into the middle of them. He was aware of Sora working on the two that had appeared closest to them and he automatically moved to attack the opposite end, assuming Sora would keep track of Kairi.

It was a disappointingly short fight. Almost all were Neo Shadows, and one single Fat Bandit, which Sora had easily dispatched with a couple of Blizzaga attacks. It wasn't often they even found enemies on the worlds anymore, and despite the danger Heartless posed, Riku almost wished the fight had just been a little harder.

He caught Sora picking up an item from the ground and stepped closer. "What'd we get?"

"Just an Ether," Sora said casually, tucking it into his left pouch. "A few synthesis items, too."

Riku resisted the urge to point out that an Ether was never "just" anything because unlike him, not everyone had pockets and pouches that could fit practically anything and everything inside. In fact he and Kairi could only hold a few items each. But pointing that out to Sora would probably get him feeling guilty for something that wasn't his fault.

"Ether's the one that gives you magical energy, right?" Kairi asked, and Riku turned aqua eyes toward her incredulously. She immediately looked defensive as Sora turned a similar gaze on her. "Hey, its not like you two ever sat down and explained it all to me."

She had a point. They had told her what happened (in general terms when the subject became a bit sensitive and they weren't ready to talk about it. Riku still wasn't sure how much of Sora's vague responses were because he wanted all of _this_ to be a surprise and how much was him not wanting to think about it.) But they hadn't really explained much about the items and though everyone knew what a Potion was, they hadn't know what magic was before the island had been destroyed.

"Ethers give magical energy, Elixirs both heal you physically and replenish your energy. Anything with a Mega in front of the name have enough doses for three people," Riku explained, summarizing it – though he briefly considered a more lengthy explanation, if only because it would prevent them from entering the palace that much longer.

The creaking of the gates cut off any response Kairi might have made. Riku glanced over and scowled as Sora smiled sheepishly and stopped pushing the gates open. "I just thought we should get it over with."

"You have _no_ patience," Kairi sighed, but lifted her chin and stepped inside the gates. Sora looked at Riku expectantly.

"I could stay out here," Riku suggested, trying to look innocent. By the amusement in Sora's eyes, he didn't do it very well.

The brunet stepped toward him, invading his personal space, his hands behind his spiky hair as he stared up knowingly at the now scowling Riku. "Riku, out of everything for you to be _scared _of, you choose a Princess?"

"I'm not scared," Riku snapped defensively, adding after a moment of Sora staring in disbelief, "And her boyfriend has an all powerful genie you know."

"You're_ridiculous_," Sora muttered, dropping his hands from behind his head. Riku almost stepped back when those same hands were placed on his shoulders. What was Sora doing now? His eyes widened as he realized exactly what Sora was doing when the shorter boy pulled him down and leaned up at the same moment for a brief, fierce kiss that seemed more like a promise than anything. If only Riku could figure out what Sora was promising. In lieu of figuring it out, he chose instead to take full advantage of Sora's willingness and pulled him closer.

"Ah, you two might want to stop that. Jasmine and Aladdin are waiting just inside. It's a good thing I told Aladdin I would check what was taking you. That wouldn't have been the best way to announce your relationship." Riku snapped his head back and away from Sora, scowling at their friend. Sora released his shoulders and stepped back, laughing sheepishly as he flushed.

"Sorry about that," Riku lied – with a smirk. Kairi rolled her eyes and waggled a finger silently at them both.

"Sure you are. Now come on. You can run away later." She scampered back inside and Riku was left trying to find more than an inarticulate growl to express his denial. He stopped glaring at the quiet laughter beside him and crossed his arms to turn a pointed look on the other boy.

"Come on, the sooner we go in, the sooner we know what Jasmine's reaction will be," Sora pointed out, nudging him briefly with his shoulder as he passed through the gates. At that point, there wasn't really a choice for Riku. He followed his friends through.

Jasmine had looked up and smiled at them, apparently engrossed in talking to Kairi. For a moment, he hoped his changed appearance was enough. But he saw when Jasmine registered exactly whom he was when she suddenly froze and straightened to stare at him coldly. Sora sighed nearby and stepped closer to him.

"You! You're the one who kidnapped me!" Riku flinched inwardly and resisted the urge to take a step back when Aladdin looked up sharply.

"And he's very sorry about it," Kairi interrupted quickly when Aladdin's eyes narrowed. Sora, usually one to have said something immediately, was ominously silent. Riku briefly glanced over to find him matching stares with Aladdin. He relaxed slightly – Sora could handle that part of it. He turned back toward Jasmine and cleared his throat, hesitantly taking a step forward. There was some immediate tensing on all sides and he stopped.

"Your Highness – " He could be polite. He could apologize – if they let him.

"I don't want your apology. I don't know what you've said to Sora that he would be traveling with you but it's your fault Hollow Bastion's keyhole – " Despite the fact he did blame himself for all of it, it still hurt to hear it from someone else.

"It wasn't!" Both of his friends exclaimed at once, bristling at the words they had worked so long to try and convince him weren't true. Sora added angrily, "He was trying to get Kairi back! He made a deal with the wrong people but it wasn't his fault. It was Maleficent and that damned Xehanort!"

There was a moment of silence after Sora's passionate defense of his friend and Aladdin and Jasmine glanced at each other uneasily. Riku frowned slightly as they failed to come back with angry words for him. Sora had more influence than he thought. But he always had easily made friends – and apparently ones that were loath to make him angry. Finally Aladdin said, "Sora, he did kidnap her."

"He did. But it was nearly two years ago, and you don't have to accept his apology but you can't put all the blame on what happened after that on him. He's my best friend and I won't let you do anything to him." Riku was pretty sure he was the only one who heard Sora add under his breath, "Not that you could."

Riku had to fight down a smile at Sora's confidence in him. He never gave up, him or Kairi. Anyone else would have let all the blame be put on him. Sora shot him a quick smile, as if he had felt Riku's eyes on him, and said, "Look, we just came to say we were in the city and maybe visit. But me and Riku can find somewhere else to sleep… But Kairi really did want to meet you and visit the palace, Princess Jasmine."

The silver haired boy had to wonder how Sora could change a situation so fast. The two looked almost guilty now, and Sora was hanging his head slightly. The thing was, Riku was at least half convinced Sora didn't actually know what he was doing – he just said what he thought. That probably made it all the more effective.

"Well, I can't really feel comfortable with the idea of… your friend here, but you and Kairi are certainly welcome to stay in the palace," The princess offered. Sora shook his head, surprising Riku, who had resigned himself to sleeping in the gummi ship alone with his nightmares.

"No, I'll stay with Riku. If we don't find a place, we can sleep in the ship," Sora returned, smiling a bit apologetically at Jasmine, who bit her lip and looked torn.

"I know! Why don't you and…" Aladdin paused, obviously trying to remember his name. Riku almost offered it, but then the man continued. "… Riku sleep in my old place? It's not the best place to sleep, but it has a view and it's not that far away so you can visit Kairi whenever you want."

There was a crafty grin on Aladdin's face that Riku was sure Jasmine couldn't see. He was surprised to see Sora grin in return, a twinkle of mischief in his eyes. Aqua eyes narrowed suspiciously. He was missing something.

"That sounds fine. At least it has more room than the gummi ship," Sora agreed. "C'mon Riku. Let's go."

Since it was obvious any apology he could come up with (was there even a way he could apologize for what happened?) he let Sora herd him outside the gate – and then had to run to keep up as Sora bolted back the way they had come. "Don't be so slow, Riku!"

He narrowed his eyes at the taunt. He had longer legs, and as long as Sora didn't cheat and use that too-fast-to-be-possible running ability, he was sure he could match him stride for stride – beat him if he knew where they were going. However, he had forgotten that Sora was a lean and wiry boy and cut around corners more sharply than he possibly could – and the smaller size of his body gave him an advantage in weight. In the end, Riku ended up staying a foot behind him at all times.

He almost knocked the shorter boy over when Sora skidded to a stop. Apparently, he had also been ready for Riku's inability to stop as quick and kept them both upright with a hand on Riku's chest and another on the wall of a nearby building. Riku scowled down at him and found a grin given in return. "Come on, Aladdin's old place is just up here."

Riku followed his gaze to the wooden pole he had seen earlier, and before he could ask a question, Sora was scrambling up the pole as if he had been climbing all his life – which was mostly true since Riku had a vague memory of urging Sora up a tree when they were only a few years old to see a seagull nest – he hadn't counted on the seagulls getting a bit angry. Curiosity drove him to follow Sora, who was already out of sight before Riku was a few feet off the ground. Either it wasn't very high up or Sora was part squirrel. Personally, he was leaning toward part squirrel. It would explain so many things.

His head lifted above the four walls that enclosed him as he climbed and he blinked before surveying the room briefly – and the boy grinning at him lazily from where he hung half over the edge of a broken wall. One silver eyebrow went up slightly. "If you fall, I'll laugh."

"Hey, I can glide. Falling isn't a very big deal for me," Sora responded easily.

Riku frowned, beginning to glower. "That's no excuse for becoming careless, Sora. You can't always depend on those abilities. What if they're only attached to those clothes?"

"They aren't. I checked that. I can't change into the four forms without them – " He saw Sora pause, and his eyes darkened. Riku's eyes narrowed as Sora shook it off and continued, "But anything I gained I gained as my own."

"You checked? I never see you out of those clothes, when did you check?" Riku sat on the steps below Sora's position and looked up through his bangs at the other boy.

"Hey, I don't wear them on the days we actually plan to go swimming," Sora protested. "And gliding is easier than using the rowboat half the time. And I figured if I can glide without the clothes, I could run too, and I'd jumped higher and done aerial dodge to get more air for gliding, so all it took was a quick check of the running. It wasn't a big deal, I just wish I could figure out how to synch blade without transforming."

"Roxas had two keyblades and you still beat him," Riku pointed out, feeling a bit envious that Sora had been the one given the opportunity to gather all those abilities.

"Mmm. True, but Roxas was more surprised than anything else. He walked away from the fight in the end. Plus it was all in my head, sort of. And I kinda want to try and learn it soon, instead of later when it might be too late to focus on it." Sora was pointedly not looking at him, and his usual smile had faded slightly.

"Nothing has happened yet. We still have time," Riku responded, not bothering to ask what Sora meant. Riku was the one most in tune with the darkness, but Kairi's light felt it as the opposite to her, and Sora had spent too much time fighting the dark to not be able to sense when something was gathering.

"Yet. But it will. There will never really be an end to it – just breaks. Who knows? Maybe this break will be for longer – or maybe the next one. But there will always be someone who wants the power darkness offers." Sora flashed him a bright smile. "And we'll be ready for them, won't we?"

"Always," He confirmed, a smirk firmly in place.

There were a couple of minutes of comfortable and contemplative silence before Sora broke it by pointing and saying, "That's the palace from here. The wall isn't too tall so when we need to speak to Kairi I can probably glide over, and you can probably jump over from some of the nearer buildings."

"I think Aladdin and Jasmine might mind," Riku pointed out dryly.

"I doubt it. Jasmine maybe, but Aladdin doesn't. He basically encouraged me to find my own way in," Sora explained, and suddenly the shared smiles were explained.

"Figures you would team up with a troublemaker," He teased. Predictably, Sora took the bait, if only to keep up the façade of a rivalry they had going on.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Sora protested, sitting up. Riku shrugged and deliberately turned his back to his friend in a silent and obvious challenge. He expected that Sora would take some sort of action that would lead to a brief spar – even if it was just more words. He didn't expect the foot that planted itself on his back and pushed him off the steps and onto the stone floor. He probably should have.

Quick reflexes saved him from having his nose end up meeting the floor and turned to glare at Sora, already feeling as if Way to the Dawn was in his hand – he glanced over to make sure it wasn't – but found Sora was once again casually lounging on the edge of the broken wall and not paying him a bit of attention. With a noise that was somewhere between annoyed and angry he lunged at Sora, completely forgetting his earlier comment about falling.

It was obvious Sora had been expecting it by the way he dodged into a roll and came up behind. Riku whirled around and gauged his friend's mood and found himself confused. He didn't look like he really wanted to spar at all. Cautiously, he relaxed and cocked his head, searching Sora's face for clues. All he found was an exasperating grin and a general aura of calm from his body language.

"This place isn't the best spot for sleeping. It still has more space, so if we don't want to sleep on the floor we can just bring stuff down from the gummi ship," Sora commented. Riku tried to express using only facial expression that he was a bit confused. His friend continued being oblivious – or at least pretending to be. It was hard to tell with Sora.

"The Cave of Wonders will take a while to get to. Do you want to start early and rest at midday or just wait until afternoon? 'Cause I'll tell you right now I'm not going anywhere during the middle of the day around here, even if we're on Carpet," Sora said after a few moments of silence. Diverted from the earlier almost-spar, Riku took up the new chain of conversation.

"Carpet? Who or what is _Carpet_?" His friend met the strangest people. What kind of name was Carpet, even if it was a pet of some kind?

"Oh, Carpet is Aladdin's flying carpet. Except Carpet thinks and has a mind of its own, so it'll do us the favor," Sora tossed back confidently. The brunet was leaning against a small dresser of some kind – it looked a bit old, but so did everything in this place.

"You want us to sit on a flying _rug_ and trust it to take us across the desert? A flying, _sentient_, rug?" Sometimes, Riku wasn't sure that all of those hits Sora had taken during all his battles had left him entirely sane. There was no way he was going to set foot onto a sentient piece of cloth.

"Hey! Carpet's my friend! He wouldn't hurt us!" Sora defended.

Riku raised an eyebrow but decided not to contest his view anymore. "Alright. I guess I'll se tomorrow anyway." He paused, remembering the earlier questions as Sora relaxed. "We'll get up early. That gives us more time to explore."

* * *

Glaring into the room filled with treasure didn't do any good when Sora was set on not being found. So far he had searched two treasure rooms, many trapped hallways, and some waterways below, and Sora was still nowhere to be found. Partly this was his fault – after taking most of the day, even on Carpet, to get across the desert, what had he found a few rooms in. One of the green transportation beacons they used to get back and forth to the gummi ship.

"I thought it would be fun if we did it the normal way. We shouldn't get lazy just because we have the gummi ship," Sora had said. Riku had twitched and lunged – and the boy had taken off laughing.

Riku sighed and sat on a pile of gold, bring one knee up to rest his head on as he mapped the place out in his mind. There were a few paths back near the beginning he hadn't checked out – but at this point Sora had to have realized Riku had lost track of him – and since the brunet knew his way around much better, he could find Riku.

Satisfied with his plan, he rolled off the pile of gold sand and settled in between it and another mound. For once he had a pack on his shoulders, considering they had both agreed the journey was too long to head back and forth – and Sora had climbed over the walls to leave Kairi a note before they left saying they would meet her in a few days while Riku packed and shopped for the trip. Packing that wasn't precisely needful, he had found out later. But he was glad for it, since the cave was colder than the rest of Agrabah and the desert, and he had packed a couple of blankets.

One he used now, smirking after a yawn. Let Sora find him instead. They had been up early, and he could use a nap.

He had no idea how long he had slept, but he awoke to the vague feeling someone was watching him. Usually this would have made him tense and get up with keyblade in hand – but he smelled no darkness, and the scent he did recognize had him waking up slowly before he consciously even put a name to it. He cracked an eye open and saw a grinning boyish face, spiky brown hair, and blue eyes.

"What are doing?" He asked before he realized he should be asking how long he had been there, what time of day it was, and by the Keyblades, where the hell he had been.

"Watching you sleep," Sora replied cheerfully before bouncing out of view. Riku sat up, shaking long silver locks away from his eyes as he twisted to keep Sora in view. He hadn't gone far, picking something up from the middle of the floor before walking back toward him. Something small was in the palm of his hand and aqua eyes narrowed as he noticed some small bits of dried blood on Sora's hand.

"What's that?" Riku asked suspiciously. Sora's eyes widened slightly before he covered it with a grin and tucked the small object – was that a chain hanging off of it? – into one of his pouches.

"Don't worry about it." Sora peered at him and gave a small sigh. "I'll tell you later, okay? It's not ready yet."

And with that cryptic statement, Riku had to be content because Sora was folding up the blanket before he had a chance to question him further. Annoyed that the boy was avoiding his gaze now, he stood up and brushed gold sand from his pants, glaring at each and every speck as he did so. Sora wasn't supposed to keep secrets from them, the only time he ever did was when it was a surprise for one of them, and not something that apparently caused him to bleed.

"Come on, I want to show you something." The brunet was moving before he finished speaking, heading towards the exit. Riku scowled darkly, disliking the fact that Sora automatically believed he would follow – which was usually true and was in this case as well, but he wanted Sora to stop and tell him what was going on.

When they started heading down and even began treading the water, he had to wonder where Sora was leading him. But the boy had been eerily silent the whole trip down and when they reached the water he sent him little sidelong glances but said nothing, annoying Riku a great deal. Suddenly Sora stopped and stared down into the water. "See that spot that's a little darker than the rest? It's an entrance to a tunnel."

The brunet looked up and was grinning when Riku stopped staring at the water in an attempt to find the darker spot. Sora grabbed his hand under the water. "C'mon, I'll show you. After Atlantica, a little swim like this is nothing. Right, Riku?"

Sora had tilted his head slightly, and there was a challenging note in his voice that Riku never could resist. He glanced sideways at Sora, though he managed not to follow his first impulse and dive to find that spot before Sora. The brunet grinned as if he could hear his thoughts and ducked under the water, tugging on Riku's hand to indicate he should follow.

Icy water rushed to cover his silver hair and soak every inch of his body. Ignoring his body's sudden clamor for warmth and sunlight, he kept a tight hold on Sora's hand and followed his friend down into the depths of the water. He felt the change around him more than he saw it, and was relieved to find he was right as his free hand reached out to touch the wall of the tunnel they were in. Smirking, he let go of Sora's hand – which turned out to be a bad idea since only a few more seconds down his hands felt a fork in the path.

He winced as for a brief moment there was light and he turned, his Keyblade ready – but the light was already fading and he saw Sora reaching for his hand. He let Way to the Dawn fade and groped for Sora's hand. He felt a rush of relief when there was a familiar tug on his hand and this time he didn't let go until his head broke out of the water – and even then it was Sora who was the one pulling away. He fought the impulse to pull him back and let go of the younger boy's hand, taking long, slow breaths as he tried to see in what seemed to be nothing but darkness.

He knew it wasn't really – it was dark, but not the kind of dark they fought. It smelled clean, normal. Despite the reassurances his common sense sent him, he reached out for land, not liking the way the water made his limbs feel numb and cold. They were heavy too, with the weight of the water. It still reminded him too much of his time in the darkness and he wished Sora didn't have the same reflexes he did, and the instinctual need to be quiet as they moved.

His hand felt something hard and he pulled himself towards it, and on top of it. Somewhere in front of him there was a faint metallic sound and a rush of light. This time it stayed, Ultima glowing faintly. Hiding his relief with a cocky smirk, Riku stood up and sauntered over. "Nice flashlight there."

"Hey, I'll have you know this is an _awesome_ flashlight," Sora shot back, grinning when Riku rolled his eyes. "Now, would you like to be a smartass some more, or can I show you something?"

"Show away. Since you dragged me here, you really should at least try and give me something in... Oh. Damn." Sora hadn't waited for Riku to finish speaking and instead there had been a flare that Riku recognized as Firaga, lighting something on the floor beneath them. Sora had pushed them back a step as the spell finished and Riku was forced to stop speaking as the fire spread up the walls and was reflected back at them from glowing threads in the wall. "What...?"

"Some kind of gems in their natural look, I guess. Or something else. I don't know. But it's cool looking, isn't it? The fire doesn't seem to go out, either. I wish I knew what was used to keep it going like that." Sora was practically bouncing as different colors shimmered in the air around them.

"So would I," Riku murmured before saying more loudly, "We should sleep in here."

"Yeah, the pack needs to be dried out now anyway. We'll have a hard time getting anything in here, since there's no gummi transport, but..."

"Nothing can get us in here either, not easily," Riku finished, ignoring the comment about the pack. He would lay the blankets out and they would dry – the fire that had been set wasn't terribly hot, but if he – or Sora, since it was his fault they were wet – stood there with them, they should dry out by the time the two were really tired. And this place at least would be warmer than the rest of the cave – though thankfully not as hot as the surface was in the daytime.

"And tomorrow we can explore more of the Cave," Sora said, and stretched. "So, want to spar?"

"Yes," was the immediate and predictable answer.

* * *

Shopping, while it wasn't as bad as Riku had feared, was not what he would have preferred doing. Not that there had been much in the Cave they hadn't seen yet, but Riku had been enjoying himself – somehow, no matter how far apart they were in the room, by the time they woke up Riku usually found that he and Sora were no more than a couple of inches apart, and usually wrapped around each other. Despite the potential embarrassment in that situation, Riku had enjoyed himself – and refused to admit that he was the one moving in his sleep, despite the fact they usually appeared not to be far from where Sora had gone to sleep.

Of course, the shopping at least was a break from the mischief Sora insisted on getting into. Riku swore that the boy had set off every trap in the Cave at least twice by the time it was decided they should go back. And despite the fact it was the younger boy setting them off, Riku seemed to take the brunt of the effects.

"There's nothing like this at home!" Kairi exclaimed, peering into one stall filled with long bolts of cloth.

"Mmm-Hmm," Sora hummed agreeably from nearby, his eyes glazed with a small smile on his face. It was obvious he hadn't heard a word she said. Kairi glanced at Riku, who met her eyes and then tilted his head toward Sora questioningly when she grinned. The girl nodded.

"It's very beautiful. It matches your eyes," Kairi continued. Riku smirked, expecting that would at least cause Sora to listen to see if he had heard right. No such luck – instead, he just made another noise of agreement and Riku blinked – and then grinned silent encouragement at Kairi.

"In fact you should wear it. We can have it made into a dress. I know a dress would just look beautiful on you," Kairi said, and they both waited as Kairi continued to peer at the cloth and Riku held in a snort. A dress? On Sora? While a bit on the short side, he definitely didn't have a girl's body.

"Okay, Kairi... Wait." Sora blinked and looked up as Riku began to laugh behind him and Kairi giggled maniacally – and started to buy the material. "What did I just agree to?"

"You just agreed to wear a dress. Congratulations," Riku drawled, smirking as Sora's eyes widened in horror. The smirk fell at Sora's next words.

"What? Why me? Riku would look better in a dress than I would! He has the hair for it!" Sora's shouts had the effect of momentarily stopping Kairi's giggles. Riku was glad someone else was gaping at Sora; it gave him time to formulate a reply that didn't sound like a whine.

"Are you calling my hair girly?" Well, that wasn't exactly a whine, but not as good as it could have been. Riku tried again. "Hell, I think people might notice I was a bit too muscular to be a girl!"

"Are you saying girls can't be muscular?" Kairi demanded, but at the same time Sora muttered, "I never said anything about being girly, I just said you'd look good in a dress."

It was amazing to see Kairi's thoughts derailed, Riku noted in one part of his mind as her eyes went very wide. Sora was looking mildly shocked – probably that he had just said that out loud. Riku took a moment to come out of his own shock and reevaluate the brunet. Then he double-checked his memory, just to make sure he wasn't hearing things. Finally, he slowly began to smirk as Sora avoided his eyes.

"So... What would you do if I did?" Riku asked, pushing the items he was carrying into Kairi's hands – they were hers anyway. He took a step forward as Sora's eyes snapped back to his searchingly.

"Did what?" An unsure Sora asked.

"Wore a dress," Riku commented, as if he was talking about the weather. It was becoming almost a game to see how much he could get Sora to blush.

"You? You wouldn't," Sora scoffed.

"Not in public," Riku agreed. He ignored Kairi's wide eyes because he had just found a weak spot of Sora's and in private he was definitely going to exploit this. A dress wasn't exactly something he felt comfortable thinking about, but if it was just for Sora he was sure he would be smugger about what he could trade for it.

"W-what?" Sora stuttered, his eyes wide with the implications. Riku took another step toward him until only a few inches separated them.

"You heard me. But you didn't answer. What would you do if I did?" Riku tilted his head and leaned forward and down, stopping with his breath fanning over Sora's face as he stared into the blue eyes.

Sora's eyes went from wide to narrowed in an instant and Riku only had a moment to wonder about it before he was pulled forward the remaining distance into a searing kiss. He _almost_ jerked back in surprise, but he was pretty sure if Sora had a moment to think on it they wouldn't be returning to the kiss anytime soon. Riku took a moment to feel proud of himself for inciting a sudden reaction from Sora – but quickly stopped feeling anything but sudden heat when Sora bit his lip and his mouth was invaded by the shorter boy's warm tongue caressing his own.

"Um, guys." Kairi's voice sounded far off. Riku ignored it to put his arms around Sora's waist and pull him closer, letting his eyes drift shut. A hand somehow had made its way into his hair – and his groan was half of surprise when another slid under his shirt. Sora's lips widened against his own into what he knew was a grin – like the other boy had just won something.

"Guys!" Kairi squeaked, and Riku opened his eyes when both hands and mouth were taken away. Disappointed, he turned to glare at Kairi, still keeping his arms around Sora – who wasn't protesting – only to see her staring around them.

He glanced around, aqua eyes meeting many pairs of brown that were staring straight at him and Sora in something that was a mix between shock and horror. His eyes narrowed and he glared right back. He hissed, "They should mind their own business."

"I don't think it's them Kairi was worried about," Sora murmured in his ear. Riku followed the direction of his gaze and flushed as he saw Sora's friends staring at him. He doubted this was exactly the way Sora had wanted to tell them that he was not only with a boy, but also with a boy who had been on the wrong side for a while and had in fact kidnapped one of them.

"Sorry," He muttered under his breath. He felt Sora shake his head, the brown spikes lightly brushing his face.

"Not your fault. It's not a big deal, anyway. They're my friends," Sora responded optimistically. That optimism was all well and good but as Riku reluctantly released him, he couldn't help but worry it would prove wrong all too soon.

"Sora?" Aladdin asked as the two boys put a bit of distance between each other. "Are you alright?"

Riku resisted the urge to glare. Sora was fine. He was the one who started kissing him, and damn if they both wouldn't have probably been a bit more than "alright". That was the first time either of them had put a hand under clothes – though in Riku's case that was as much because of Sora's multi-layered magical clothing as because he was unsure how Sora would react.

People were still staring at them, and some were muttering. Riku tightened his fists and _didn't_ call Way to the Dawn at the evident threatening tones in some of their voices. With their Princess and her fiancé standing nearby, no one was doing anything, but Riku was glad their stay in Agrabah was nearly over. As it was they would probably be leaving immediately once Sora's confrontation with his friends was over.

"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?" Sora asked Aladdin and Riku slid his gaze back to the brunet. There was a slight challenging look in Sora's eye, practically daring his friend to start something. Riku flinched slightly. Sora really did need to learn when fights should be public, and when they shouldn't be.

Aladdin and Jasmine were staring as if they didn't know quite what to make of it all. Riku was relieved when he felt Kairi touch his shoulder and saw her hand tugging on Sora's sleeve. "Why don't we go somewhere else? We can explain everything there. It's... different here, Sora, and this isn't a discussion to have with Aladdin and Jasmine in the middle of the street.

Riku offered her a tense smile as the only thanks he could give for her interruption without taking his eyes off the surrounding crowds. Low, and almost under his breath he said, "She's right, Sora."

For a moment he though the brunet would disagree. But his head jerked down into a nod and Riku set himself on one side while Kairi was on his other – flanking him, guiding him as they walked away, expecting the pair would follow on their own if they wish. Riku almost wished they wouldn't. Things could have gone much better.

* * *

End Part Four.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

* * *

Chapter Five - Pride Rock

Simba's world was closest to Agrabah, closer than Mulan's world at least, and Riku had seemed more eager to see a new world than one he had visited – and since Kairi had been the one who wanted to go to Agrabah, Sora made the decision to go to Pride Rock for Riku – and decided it would be more amusing not to mention the fact they would be lions. Or he would be. He assumed they would be as well since they were both human, but who knew with the magic.

"Is there any customs we should know about Sora? Anything we should avoid?" Kairi asked him, peering down at the world below. He grinned, and readied the transport beam to take them down.

"You'll see in just a minute," He said, and grinned. He found a suspicious aqua gaze leveled at him and he attempted to look innocent. Riku's eyes narrowed further and Sora quickly herded them toward the glowing green circle. "I promise you'll understand in just a second."

He reached out and pulled Riku in, and for a moment they were all on the circle – and then he was staring at the ground, and there was a surprised squeak and a definite growl of anger from either side of him. He quickly jumped away, grinning as he noticed his lion body had grown somewhat. He turned with his muscles tensed just in case Riku adjusted to his new body quicker than he had.

"Sora," Riku growled and Sora barely contained his laughter. Sure, Riku still had height and weight advantage over him – but he was in that awkward stage with a scraggly near mane and not quite full height or weight. Sora stretched his paws in front of him and flicked his tail, just to annoy him.

"Ri-ku," Sora returned, stifling a laugh. He heard a quiet mental chuckle and knew Roxas was having fun at all their expenses. Sora promised himself he would do a change later just so he would be able to mock Roxas about his own lion form. For now, he watched his friends carefully.

As expected, Riku was pale, his fur white and his almost-mane the same silver color as his hair. Riku was also already getting used to the animalistic expressions he could use, if the bared teeth were any indication. Kairi was looking a bit miffed, her tail cracking through the air. Really, he thought she probably looked the most out of place with red fur and a pink underside. Not that any of them were normal looking, but at least he and Riku were just a _little_ bit off.

"Change us back!" Riku ordered, as if that would do any good. Sora's eyes softened as he saw the way Riku bristled. He really didn't like this. Hesitantly, Sora approached them both again.

"I can't. This is the form we have to be in. For me, Donald says my clothes changed me and I guess... his magic changed him? I don't know. But this is a place where it's better to be like this. It's not too bad, really." Sora grinned at them, baring fangs in the process – and yelped and quickly jumped backwards as Riku attempted to pounce on him. Fortunately, Riku was not yet used to four legs and quickly ended up falling head over tail, snarling as he did so.

Sora stifled a laugh, because it would only make Riku angrier... and because he had done much the same thing. "Look, don't rush into it. You'll find your balance soon enough and then you can try and kill me, okay? But first, why don't we practice walking and running."

"I think you both look absolutely adorable," Kairi suddenly said, and Sora would have blushed if he had been human. Instead his ears flattened slightly and he hunched down, remembering Donald's words to him that had predicted she would say something similar.

"Um... Thank you," Sora returned diplomatically, because adorable wasn't really something he had wanted to be, especially not at sixteen... even if he was a lion cub. Or, not quite a cub still, but not quite the size of a young mature male either. Larger than Kairi, at least, and he thought his spiky fur had extended somewhat... though he reminded himself that it would probably look strange once he found a river to look into.

"I am not adorable," Riku grumbled. "Furry right now, and maybe even fluffy, but I am _not_ adorable."

He paused briefly and Sora groaned, already seeing the gleam in his eyes. Riku continued, "Sora, however, is definitely adorable."

"He is also the one who actually knows the way around this place and he suggests you probably shouldn't talk about who is more cutesy when you're still on your back with your paws in the air," Sora returned.

"You shouldn't talk about yourself in the third person," Riku said, rolling clumsily to his feet. Behind the white lion, Kairi was taking a few tentative steps. Sora took his eyes off Riku to watch.

"Just remember there are four legs and your balance is off – and you're lower to the ground. It's not that bad, actually. We can run fast in this form." He didn't mention he would still be able to run faster than them until he taught them to dash. He would wait for the challenge Riku was sure to give.

"Fine, oh great master of four feet, give us your seeds of wisdom." Riku was smirking as best one could with a lion muzzle. Sora glared at him and reminded himself to definitely think up some terms for the race. Riku already owed him from the dancing, he might as well get in another favor while he was at it.

"I'm going to ignore you being stupid for the sake of the peace," Sora told him, and before he could retort, he began to teach them.

* * *

_'Riku is furious. You really shouldn't have tricked him.'_ Roxas didn't actually seem disapproving – in fact he seemed vaguely amused.

"Don't try to be my conscience. You're not good at it," Sora retorted playfully – and forgot that perhaps he should have stopped doing that out loud, because both Kairi and Riku blinked at him. At the moment all three were curled up in the elephant graveyard – not the safest place to be, but after a day of training, it was better than anywhere else besides Pride Rock – and both Kairi and Riku had wanted to make sure they had the basics down before meeting a whole pride of lions.

"Naminé's giggling at the idea of Roxas being your conscience – instead of persuading you not to do something he would encourage you," Kairi laughed. Riku gave her a startled glance.

"Were either of you going to tell me that you could talk to them eventually or do you two enjoy me learning this on accident?" Riku asked in annoyance, his tail flicking harshly. "Though at least it's better than finding out by actually seeing Naminé, like I did with Roxas."

Sora's tail twitched nervously at the stunned blue-eyed gaze turned toward him. "You can turn into Roxas?"

"Well... Yeah. I mean, I can let him surface and my hair changes color and our clothes usually change, but we're both still inhabiting the same space, just he's the one in front." Sora resisted the urge to nervously wash his paws. Having the instincts of a feline was good sometimes, but that wasn't one he wanted to give in to.

Kairi looked thoughtful – or maybe as if she was talking to someone. Sora hesitated, but flicked his eyes toward Riku – who still looked angry. He slipped a bit closer and nudged the boy's larger form. "Hey, we don't mean to keep these things from you."

"I wouldn't blame you if you did," Riku murmured, and Sora winced. Apparently they were back to Riku getting caught in his memories and blaming himself and Sora having to find a way to make him stop. Except he couldn't hit him with the Keyblade – that hurt too much – and he couldn't kiss him thanks to the lack of proper anatomy.

Sora did the next thing that came to mind. He stood up on his hind legs, placed his paws on the white back, and bit Riku's ear before the boy had more than a chance to look confused. Riku hissed in pain and then it turned into a roar – not quite the same as Simba's, but definitely more than Sora would have managed. He tumbled off of Riku's back when the boy-lion stood and spun around to face him. "What was that for?"

"You were brooding!" Sora responded defensively, crouching down, muscles tense and one paw slipping forward for better leverage – to run or defend he wasn't quite sure. Obviously biting Riku had been a bad idea considering how he was being glared at and the low growl he could hear.

"You didn't have to _bite_ me. Those teeth are sharp!" Sora was a bit confused. His teeth were sharp but he hadn't bitten that hard and Riku wasn't bleeding. He narrowed his eyes, considering his friend. Riku just had to have more than one problem on his mind at all time, didn't he? Brooding about the past and whatever was really bothering him now.

"What's wrong with you?" He demanded. "It couldn't have hurt that much. Stop being a baby!"

Riku tilted his head and his ears flattened. "A baby? At least I don't _look_ like one."

Sora growled. That was true at the moment, he was a lion cub, but Sora wasn't taking that without a fight. "At least I-"

"Kairi says you two are both being silly," A soft voice interrupted. Sora turned his head slowly, keeping one eyes on Riku – and then forgot the fight altogether.

"_Naminé_?" He asked incredulously, and Roxas was babbling in his mind and pushing because he wanted to talk to her and for a moment Sora's head spun before he firmly pushed Roxas down, thinking loudly, _'WAIT. Just a minute.'_

There was mental grumbling, but he was staring at the now pale lioness cub with a white stomach and paws. Actually, she did fit in better than Kairi, but Sora wasn't going to say that. She was ducking her head and her ears were nearly flattened as her tail twitched – she was definitely nervous. "H-Hi. Kairi wanted to see if it would work. I can go back now, if you two would rather..."

"That's Kairi and yours choice, not ours," Riku responded, just as soft, and Sora glanced at him, startled – and then smiled encouragingly at Naminé before closing his eyes.

_'You want to talk to her?'_ He asked the other presence inside him, knowing the answer. Roxas didn't even bother thinking back, he just waited impatiently and then they were changing, the small bit of pain easy to deal with – Sora now thought of it as a sharp reminder that they weren't supposed to be doing this and they were supposed to be one. He had also learned to ignore that pain once he decided that's what it was.

Roxas blinked and moved one paw forward, ignoring Riku's grumble of annoyance and Naminé's gasp as he stared as his fur. It was a pale cream color and he glanced at his chest to see pure white starting there and moving downward. He would bet his spiky fur on his head was as blond as his hair usually was. He glanced up, his eyes meeting Naminé's. "I guess Kairi and you can switch too."

"We never have before," She answered softly. He smiled, feeling a bit awkward. It was easier to talk to Riku, frankly, than to Naminé, who probably had the same thoughts as him sometimes. This was it, this was their life. He sometimes wondered if he would just disappear if he let go, if one of the times he retreated past Sora's ability to reach him he would just... not exist. And there would only be Sora.

"I... Sora offered a few months ago. Up until then I had been... drifting, most of the time." It was difficult, talking to her. There was no anger to rely on like there had been with Riku, and with her there, her memories of him staring at him, if was almost painful how much closer to the surface his memories of Twilight Town were... and how much the part of him that had been Axel's best friend and confronted Sora in The World That Never Was.

"A few months ago?" Naminé tilted her head and then giggled. "Kairi wants to ask if it was the night of Riku's birthday party."

Roxas blinked, wondering why she would think that – and felt Sora's surprise and embarrassment and he almost wanted to feel the memories that were right there – but that might take too long if Sora was being stubborn about showing him them. "I think so. Why?"

The pale lion-girl giggled again, and shook her head. "It doesn't matter. Do you... Well. There's a lot I want to ask you, but right now, I want to take advantage of this before our bodies get too tired or we change back... is there a time limit?"

"I don't know. If there is we haven't hit it." He shifted his weight, quiet and waiting for her to decide what she wanted to do. She was equally quiet, staring back at him. There was a groan from nearby.

"Will you two just decide _something_? Time limit or not, all three of us were running around all day, and you may have changed appearances but I'm betting your bodies will be just as tired as they were before. Do what you want so we can all get to sleep faster." Riku was glaring just a bit – mostly at Roxas. He was glad, since he doubted Naminé would take glaring too well right now when she was even nervous about taking her Other's place on the outside.

_'Your boyfriend has issues,'_ Roxas grumbled mentally.

_'Yeah, but he's not being normal, even for him. Something else is going on in his head. If I have to deal with him being like this all week I'm running off to the Oasis with Simba,'_ Sora replied, heaving a sigh. Roxas smirked and stretched out his paws, sending a sidelong glance toward Naminé.

" If you can remember the Dash Sora was teaching them – race?" Usually he would have said she didn't have a chance – but in these bodies, who knew. Sora had been able to keep up with Simba in a body less than a fourth the size or experience. Sora was a special case – but he was beginning to realize all three of the Island children were – and their two Nobodies of course.

"I'd love to! And Kairi learned it, so I'll be able to use it as well. Since Sora's already shown he can access some of your abilities." There was an almost teasing glint in her eyes and she looked pointedly toward Riku. Roxas shrugged. That had been all Sora's idea – and if it won him something, good for him. Though, if it backfired, Roxas had no problem laughing at him.

"What are you talking about, Naminé?" Riku asked suspiciously. The girl shook her head, just smiling.

"Roxas?" Riku turned toward him. Roxas smirked.

"Heh. Wouldn't you like to know?" He had no idea how Naminé understood what he was about to do – but in the next second the two Nobodies were dashing away, side by side, and with an angry growl Riku was after them.

Blood, real and from his shared heart, rushed through his veins. His muscles, already tired from a day of exercise, screamed in protest. It was wonderful. As a Nobody, even the pain had just been something entirely physical. There were no corresponding emotions, no worry or annoyance – faint echoes, sometimes, yes. Sometimes the echoes were strong – but mostly, he had known he was nothing.

He grinned at Naminé, who smiled back. At this moment, they were something. A borrowed something, but all the emotions were there. Annoyance at Riku as he growled from behind them, joy at seeing Naminé and running beside her, one of the few he could count as a friend. And there was carefully cherished and hidden sorrow that Axel would never be able to feel this – so many emotions. He had never felt this strongly; he had never been able to.

His eyes trailed sideways, seeing a tiny ledge in the side of one rock pillar. His paws bunched together for an instant before his front ones left the ground and his back legs _pushed_ against the ground. In the moment when he was airborne and between the ground and the ledge he decided. _'Next world we're on, I want to try and glide.'_

He landed on the ledge, sliding sideways as he did. There was an answering thought, warm and full of an emotion he felt hesitant to name. _'Of course, Roxas. Whatever you want.'_

Roxas bared his teeth in a silent grin and challenge as both Riku and Naminé stared up at him. Inwardly, he said in a perfect deadpan, _'I want sea-salt ice cream.'_

_'Okay,'_ Sora agreed.

_'Really? I can have some?'_ Roxas stopped paying any attention to the girl and boy below him at that point. His ears flattened as he realized how excited he sounded. _'I mean, that would be good.'_

_'We'll stop in Hollow Bastion on the way to... wherever we go next. Land of Dragons, probably. Donald's uncle makes it.'_ Roxas suddenly wished that they were leaving already. It had been entirely too long since he had sea-salt ice cream.

The conversation was cut short when there was suddenly someone pouncing in front of him – and not someone he recognized. A cub even smaller than Kairi/Naminé glared at him with green eyes and dark fur and even darker tufts of fur that would someday be a mane. "Who are you?"

There was a sudden growl from down below and Roxas knew Riku had seen the new presence. Perfectly unconcerned, Roxas stared at the cub. "Wrong question."

"Oh?_Really_? What's the right one then?" The cub shot back.

"The right question is," Roxas paused as Riku landed behind the cub and the ledge suddenly became very crowded. He smirked and continued, "How stupid _are_ you?"

"And my answer is _very_," Riku growled. The cub turned his head, eyes wide – and then a golden thing darted toward them. Automatically Roxas stopped that forward motion, calling the keyblade to his mouth and slamming it into the... female cub who was now flying away from the ledge to land in front of Naminé.

Almost instantaneously the male cub snarled and lunged for him, apparently forgetting what he had just done to the other cub. Riku responded before the cub had done more than begin a jump, his pale paw cuffing the cub sideways off the ledge – to land on top of the recovering female.

"Tch. Brats," Roxas muttered after his Keyblade disappeared. Riku snorted, sounding awfully like he was holding back laughter. Roxas glared at him, but heard Sora doing the same in his head.

"Fine. You can deal with them then," Roxas grumbled, and closed his eyes. Sora wouldn't want him hurting children, lion or not, or questioning them. Besides, if he stared at them too long he would either be swayed by the fact they were adorable or want to kill them. He wasn't good with kids.

Sora opened his eyes and jumped down easily. He heard Riku follow him, landing just as lightly. Padding forward lightly, he grins as the male cub stares at him wide-eyed. "Sorry about Roxas hurting your friend, but you were being kinda rude."

"Kind of? He tried to attack," Riku muttered. Both cubs bristled.

"He didn't attack until after that other one hit me with... something! And... and... Heeeey, where'd he go?" The female cub was looking everywhere. Sora, on the other hand, squinted as he stared at her.

He was connecting things in his mind as Riku and Naminé tried to avoid the question and questioned them instead. This girl had Simba's eyes. Nala had been pregnant. Since the time he had brought Simba back until now, it had been long enough for them to have a cub and for it – her? – to be as big as this one. On the other hand, he had a feeling that the other cub was not her brother (his coloring wasn't like Simba or Nala) and that Simba wouldn't let any child of his wander alone.

Sora realized he was confusing himself. He shook his head and refocused on the girl cub. "Hey, are you related to Simba?"

Both cubs froze and the female's jaw dropped. Then _she _took a good look at him. "How do you know my dad?"

"So you are his daughter! Hi there, I'm Sora! Sorry about knocking you down, you're not hurt are you? You shouldn't have surprised Roxas, though, he doesn't take it well. Nice to meet you!" He practically bounced closer, his tail swishing wildly. It was good to see her, in fact. He could see all three of the others staring at them, but Simba's daughter had lifted her head and her ears were up and her eyes curious.

"You're Sora? The one who really isn't a lion? You helped my father defeat Scar, and the Heartless! Wow, Dad always said you'd come back someday, but I didn't think I'd get to really meet you! I'm Kiara!" She blinked, and tilted her head. "You're still small. Guess it's cause you're not really a lion, huh?"

Sora ducked his head, embarrassed at the gushing attitude. He ignored the comment about being small. She was smaller than he was! "Yup, I'm Sora. And of course I came back! These are my friends, Riku and Ka... eh-heh. Naminé. She's Naminé."

"What happened to the other one?" Kiara's companion asked suspiciously.

"He's inside me," Sora answered, and grinned as they blinked at him. Riku muttered something uncomplimentary under his breath and Sora pretended that his lion body didn't hear as well as it did.

"Um... Okay. Well, this is Kovu. He's uh... An..." She glanced around and then said, very quietly and seriously. "An Outsider. Isn't that so _cool_?"

Sora blinked. Naminé and Riku were both glancing at him. He shrugged. "Outsider?"

"Oh. Um. I suppose you wouldn't know." Kiara glanced at Kovu. He shrugged indifferently while still glaring. "I guess I should tell you. See, it began with some lionesses that were loyal to Scar, mainly one, Zira."

* * *

Somehow, both cubs ended up sleeping in the elephant graveyard with them. Riku's glare plainly told him that the other boy thought this was a very bad idea. Naminé was quite taken with them, and currently was curled halfway around Kovu – he wouldn't let Sora or Riku touch him and both of them wanted the two youngest cubs in the middle.

"They could have fund their own place to sleep," Riku grumbled, staring at the cubs.

"It was already getting late and they both admitted they weren't quite sure which was to go. Looking outside the graveyard – things have grown back and I can see Pride Rock but I wouldn't have made Kiara go back alone in that – and not with Kovu, either. From how she explained it, he wouldn't be very welcome." Sora curled up around the already sleeping Kiara, smiling as she snuggled backwards into him. He saw Riku stiffen at the movement and shift, looking from the sleeping Naminé to Sora and back again.

He chuckled and shook his head. "Come here. You can always move before we go to sleep. Besides, small as most of us are, we're still dangerous predators, right? And I haven't seen the hyenas at all. Kiara says they're gone, and she hasn't seen any Heartless."

Riku grumbled and growled, but it didn't stop him from taking the invitation and lying behind Sora – who took the opportunity to wiggle into a better position and drop his head on Riku's shoulders. Unexpectedly, Riku commented, "I wish we were human right now."

Sora blinked, but barely missed a beat in replying. "We will be again. This is only a visit, and we can do anything you want at the next world."

He knew he shouldn't have said that almost immediately and Riku proved him right when he slyly asked, "_Anything_? In that case we should leave as soon as possible."

"I_can_ bite you," He reminded the older boy.

"I didn't know you were into _that_, Sora," Riku purred right back at him. Sora groaned.

"Pervert," He muttered as a last resort. Riku gave a low chuckle.

"You're the one who said anything. And after a week of nothing I may hold you to that." Riku was obviously having too much fun with that statement.

"Anything_besides_ sex," Sora said, rolling his eyes. There was a paused, and then Riku turned, his eyes actually a bit wider than normal Sora took his head away from the scraggly beginnings of a mane to meet his eyes better. "What is it?"

"You mean that, don't you?" He had a feeling that question was more important than it looked, so despite one eyebrow raising he waited a moment to make sure Riku wasn't seeing any hidden meanings.

"Yeah, of course I do," He answered a bit slowly. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He punctuated this statement by beginning to purr and Sora almost jumped, startled at the sound. Riku stopped almost immediately, looking comical with his eyes wide and his ears flat like that. "What...? Did I just..._purr_?"

"Yup! Sounded nice, too," Sora said cheerfully, and put his head back down, deciding that whatever was going on in Riku's head wasn't something bad. He didn't have to bite him then.

"I_purred_ Sora. How can you take this so lightly? I'm not a cat!" Riku objected.

Another voice interrupted them, a sleepy Kovu glaring at them from bright green eyes. "You are right now, so shut up and quiet down. Some of us are trying to sleep!"

Riku snarled, and Sora felt his muscles tense. He yawned sleepily. "Riku, let it go. You can bully him in the morning."

His eyes were closed so he couldn't see the glares the two were exchanging, but he was sure they were there. Then Riku murmured in his ears, "Fine. But tomorrow, if he steps even a little out of line, I'm finding a river and drowning him."

"Mmm. 'kay. Sounds good," He mumbled in return, and pressed closer to the body heat Riku was giving off, and ignoring any further mumblings. He wanted sleep – it wasn't something he got a lot of often – well, he did this trip, but the presence of both his friends nearby seemed to help with the nightmares.

If he hadn't been so sleepy, he might have made fun of the way Riku began to purr – but he was nearly asleep already, and it was much too soothing for him to complain.

* * *

Before he even opened his eyes he sensed them and sighed to the tense presence beside him, "Not Heartless, so I'm guessing angry parents."

"Probably." He knew by the soft sound Riku hadn't opened his eyes either. So Sora went first, cracking his eyes open and glaring at the lioness standing about ten feet away – but she was looking over them and Sora turned his head to see Simba and Nala both standing there.

"Great. Kovu, Kiara, your parents are here." Sora stood as he spoke, and stretched his body, clearly indicating how serious he took the situation as he nudged both cubs gently. "C'mon, sleepy heads. Get up before the air turns to ice. They have a lot of problems, huh?"

"He killed Scar," Kovu grumbled coldly as he saw Simba. Kiara sighed as she raised her head and saw the three lions.

"And, Scar had killed his dad and tried to have him killed. Oh, and starved his mother and girlfriend. Up!" Sora nudged them a bit more harshly. Kovu took a swipe at his nose. Kairi – apparently they had changed in their sleep – swatted at his rump.

"Behave," She scolded him, and both cubs turned wide eyes on her.

"Where's Naminé?" Kovu asked, sounding disappointed.

"Inside of me. I don't think we should switch now, but if you want, we can visit later. She says she wants to." Kairi was smiling, but Sora was the one who saw Riku twitch and move forward.

"Right, that's enough of that." Riku ignored the growl of the scrawny lioness as he bent down and picked up Kovu in his mouth. Sora made a face – and then jumped forward, Keyblade ready when the lioness lunged for them.

"Don't even think about it," He growled.

"Put. Him. Down." The lioness was crouching low. Sora didn't take his eyes off of her, but he heard Kovu's suddenly rapid breathing and the way Riku snorted. He was probably attempting to sneer through a mouthful of Kovu.

"Kovu, is this your mother?" Sora asked.

"Y-yeah." He felt bad for how scared the cub suddenly sounded. A moment later, he felt bad for Kovu being thrown through the air and he glared at the smug looking Riku behind him.

"You're trespassing, Zira," Simba barked from behind – and getting closer. Sora ignored Simba, since apparently Simba was ignoring him, but kept an eye on Riku as he turned around to face the larger male.

"Nuka!" Zira barked. "Come here and get Kovu!"

And from behind one skeleton the skinniest, weakest looking male lion Sora had ever seen slunk out, glaring bitterly at all of them – but smiling sweetly at his mother. Sora glanced at Kovu, at this point ready to take both cubs away and defend them if either of them made any indication. But Kovu let Nuka pick him up - Sora half expected the male to bite him harder – and carry him away.

"Kovu," He heard Kiara whisper, followed by a small, belated, "Bye..."

Sora could have sworn he saw Kovu answer before Nuka turned and jumped away with the cub. The female lioness took one last look at Kiara before slowly backing away, snarling when Simba growled out an order to stop.

"Let her go. She just wanted her cub," Riku order and Sora exchanged a surprised glance with Kairi. Riku didn't even like Kovu. He didn't seem to like either of the cubs – though he was a bigger fan of second chances than he once had been, and he was right. She had just been getting her son.

"Look, I don't know who you are, but – "

"That's Riku," Sora interrupted, the Keyblade fading as he dropped it. He turned partly around and tilted his head at Simba questioningly. "And he's right Simba. Trespassing or not, she was just getting her child. And Kiara trespassed on their land first."

"Oh, really?" That didn't sound good. He turned back to the lioness. She was eyeing Kiara with a gleam in her eyes that sent chills down Sora's spine. He slid in front of Kiara and heard Kairi doing the same, a growl being emitted from Kairi's throat that he never would have believed she could do before.

"Leave Kiara alone. Kovu trespassed right back. They were just having fun! Why do you have to spoil it with your pointless war?" Kairi sounded and looked upset. Turning his eyes toward her, he had to wonder if that was a good thing to confront them on. Obviously anyone fighting for Scar was a bit obsessed to the point of insanity.

"Pointless?" Zira screeched. "Pointless? He was the rightful king, and Kovu will be his heir! Simba is a usurper, and he doesn't deserve Scar's throne."

"So, this one's crazy. That one?" Sora turned and followed Riku's gaze.

"No, just protective. Simba's not crazy," Sora said, and nudged Kiara. "Let's go see your dad and leave the crazy lady be."

"But – Yeah. Daddy will be mad at m enough as it is," Kiara whimpered. Sora nodded agreeably and pushed her forward with one paw, keeping her and Kairi in front of him and Riku. He slid his eyes back halfway there – to see the lioness had slunk off. Good. He didn't want to fight her, crazy or not. Kovu would probably be unhappy if they hurt his mother and he fully planned to sneak in and make sure the kid was okay before they left.

"You're in a lot of trouble young lady – you're lucky Sora happened to be there to make sure you weren't hurt," Simba was saying when Sora started paying attention again. He remembered Roxas hitting her with the Keyblade and decided not to mention that in fact it was partly his fault she _had_ been hurt, even if it had only amounted to her being briefly stunned.

"And Sora, thank you. You couldn't have known what was going on or I'm sure – " Simba began.

"I would have done exactly the same thing. Kiara explained it all. Kovu's just a kid – a cub. Just like Kiara. She didn't need protecting from him, and they both needed some looking after." He stood firm, not quite glaring at Simba, but he definitely was staring defiantly. Kovu hadn't done a thing wrong – in fact, Kiara had been the one who had been rash and attacked. Sora decided not to mention this.

"That may be. But he _is_ an Outsider." Simba had apparently become dignified. And maybe a bit close-minded. Sora opened his mouth to make him see – there had to be a way to do it – but Riku cut him off, shoving both him and Kairi away from the older lions with his nose.

"Forget it, Sora. He's not going to listen," Riku muttered, glaring at Simba who had taken a step forward. Sora shook his head at Simba and glared at Riku and tried to stay stubbornly still.

"But, he's – " He tried again.

"_Forget it_. You can't solve everything. Not on our vacation." Ah, that was a point. Reluctantly Sora let Riku shove him forward once more and moved to keep pace with Kairi, taking one last frustrated look at Simba. Riku was right. This wasn't about Heartless and in one-way Simba was right – Zira was definitely wrong. But Kovu... Kovu was young, and just being raised wrong.

His ears flattened and he reluctantly led his friends to the oasis, not seeing the way Riku narrowed his eyes or Kairi glanced at him worriedly.

* * *

The rain couldn't bother him as much under the trees. Sora peered out into the deluge and wondered where Riku and Kairi were. Hopefully finding better shelter. Since just hours after they had left Kiara with her parents two days before, it had been raining. So far, it didn't seem to show any signs of stopping. It just poured down. Every once in awhile, the quality of it would change and he would hear distant thunder - but no actual lightning yet.

Deciding he couldn't do anything until Riku and Kairi came back, and since Roxas was silent and not up for helping him not be bored, he curled up. It would be best to get as much sleep as possible when it was only raining hard, and hadn't added both wind and what seemed to be waterfalls of rain to the formula. He closed his eyes, and let himself drift off with the thoughts of the warm beach back home.

Almost immediately, the dreams claimed him and darkness surrounded him. Nobodies, Heartless, Organization XIII, all of them were in his dreams. But the one he hated most was Anti-form – or being stuck like that. His darkness having taken over and he unable even to control it to the extent he could now.

Roxas dreamed as he did – but he dreamed of nothing, of fading. Like Axel had, except there would be no one there for him. Neither of them was able to help the others with their dreams.

They awoke when there was something on top of them and the first thing they thought, as one, was, _'Heartless!'_

Ultima was in his mouth and he had lunged before he was fully awake. Only the clang of the two blades connecting and wide aqua eyes made Sora realize just exactly what he had done. Immediately Ultima vanished and he backed up, hunching down low to the ground in the aftermath of a rush of fear and adrenaline, some of the dreams still mocking him.

"Sora?" Way to the Dawn was gone as Riku hesitantly approached. Sora almost took a step back and then firmly told himself to snap out of it. The dreams weren't real and Riku had just startled him out of them. He managed a weak smile.

"Sorry. I... Bad dreams. We thought you were a Heartless." He let Riku touch noses with him, and then hesitantly nuzzle him, obviously trying to give him some sort of comfort despite the unfamiliar body.

"You dream of Heartless?" Riku asked, sounding surprised. "I didn't know you had dreams of what happened."

"I don't usually when you two are around. And not even always of Heartless, or things that happened. Just... possibilities. Darkness. You know. Stuff." He shifted uncomfortably despite Riku's attempts at calming him down. He didn't really want to discuss his nightmares – they weren't a problem very often and he didn't want his friends upset. He knew they would understand, he didn't worry about that. He did worry about them – especially Riku – blaming themselves for not noticing them, or something equally stupid.

"No. I don't. You never mentioned it and I never thought... that you dreamt of darkness. You're Sora. I didn't even think you saw there were anything but good outcomes," Riku murmured, pressing closer. Sora turned his head to catch a glimpse of Riku's eyes and sighed at the guilt he saw in them. Riku was much too ready to find himself guilty. He wondered if his friend would ever forgive himself for everything that had happened.

"It's not your fault," He reminded him. Riku shot him a sharp look.

"Really? Someone else opened his heart to darkness? Our world was destroyed Sora." Riku was glaring out into the rain. Sora didn't bother trying to make him look over.

"Riku, one of us was going to end up with the Keyblade. The Heartless can track the Keyblade. So, if you hadn't opened up to the darkness, the Heartless would have come – and all of us would have been lost. There was no one to help us there. No one to explain what they were. Who knows what would have happened then – Ans- Xehanort's Heartless probably would have gotten Kairi." He couldn't say it had turned out better this way, because he didn't know. But they had both ended up with a Keyblade in the end, and their world was back. Kairi was safe, he was safe, and Riku was safe and whole.

Riku appeared to be thinking about it, cocking his head and still not looking at Sora. "Our world was doomed?"

"Well... I don't know. I mean, we know where the keyhole is, and it was easy to get to, even then. So, maybe you would have locked it in time." He didn't mention the other worlds that would have been doomed if they had only saved their island. No one would have come to them – they expected eventually the Keyblade would turn up in Traverse Town.

"Locking the world wouldn't have stopped the Heartless from appearing. Just from destroying the world. I don't think I could have learned fast enough – and Xehanort's Heartless still would have come for Kairi. Just fighting on the island wouldn't have been enough for me to defeat him. We still would have failed." Apparently, Riku's mind was determined to be pessimistic no matter what Sora said. Sora rolled his eyes – and then looked around, frowning.

"Where's Kairi?" Sora didn't panic. Not quite anyway. Riku wouldn't have left her alone if it were dangerous. But he should have noticed, he should have realized immediately that she was gone. But he hadn't and Roxas stirred in his mind, worried and angry with all three of them, but silent.

"She's in the shelter we found. Also, Sora? Is there anything to eat besides bugs around here? We can't eat the plants, Kairi tried. Our bodies throw it up." Riku was looking slightly uncomfortable and Sora wondered if he hadn't already guessed what the only other option was.

"We could hunt," He suggested as he trotted out into the rain. "So where's this shelter?"

"We could... but aren't the animals all sentient?" Riku lifted a paw to point, apparently not realizing how absurd that looked. Sora resisted laughing even while Riku said, "It's just over there. We found a cave, mostly hidden by these damn plants."

"The plants are good cover. And um, yeah, they are." Sora looked away and hurried off toward the caves. Riku trailed behind him and he could practically feel the puzzled gazes as the wheels turned in Riku's head.

"Sora... Have you been hunting here?" There was no judgment in Riku's voice, just pure almost morbid curiosity.

"Simba killed it!" He quickly protested, and immediately winced and said in a small voice, "I was too small to catch a meal for all three of us... Nala was with us. But... I helped."

There was a pause and then Riku had increased his pace to come beside him. "This is the cave, behind here."

"Sora! Riku found you then. I was afraid you might have wandered off!" Kairi exclaimed upon seeing him. He pretended to pout at her implication.

"No, he was just being lazy _like usual_ and sleeping while we did all the work." Riku smirked in his direction. He growled in mock anger and crouched down. Riku's tail lashed at the unspoken challenge and lowered into his own crouch.

"Not in the cave, you two. I'm trying to dry out the leaves," Kairi said, and Sora noticed some leaves piled as if she was trying to make a bed out of them.

"I still think we could just sleep in the gummi ship," Riku muttered.

"I heard that," Kairi sang. Then she quirked an eyebrow and glanced at Sora. "Did you sleep in the gummi ship?"

"Nope." He didn't mention there's had been even worse equipped for sleeping. He had specifically designed this one so they could actually have a room to sleep in – instead of in the cramped cockpit with Donald's snores and Goofy sprawled out half on top of the controls. It hadn't been too bad after awhile, and he eventually got used to the snores – but he was always worried that Goofy would shift in his sleep and they would go careening off into space. Sleeping as a lion was much more preferable.

Besides, he was quite sure if Riku slept in the gummi ship they all would – and while he preferred to just block it from his mind, he was missing being able to touch Riku just as much as he was sure Riku was missing him. He was sure Kairi actually wanted to sleep. At least if they were moving he had to pay attention to the controls. Or Riku did, if he wanted to drive. Either way, it would keep them off of each other for the ride.

After the ride wasn't even an issue.

* * *

End Chapter Five. 

Please Review.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, or anything Disney.

* * *

Chapter Six - Land of Dragons

The ride in the gummi ship had been interesting to say the least. Kairi had found out exactly how amusing – and slightly frustrating – it was to have two hormone driven boys in the gummi ship who wanted to be all over each other. At least Sora had tried to keep them apart. For most of the time. But the gummi ride to Land of Dragons was over two days long and Kairi knew for a fact Sora had apparently dropped any excuse he had not to spend all his time on Riku. The "on" being almost literal at least in the last few hours before they reached their destination, when Kairi had walked out of their shared room and found that Sora had pinned a very willing Riku to the wall of the small corridor. It had been a bit embarrassing to ask them to move so she could walk by and get to the bathroom.

So Kairi was very glad to see the next world come up. Apparently Riku had already been there. She looked down at the Land of Dragons and smiled. Maybe they could have a snowball fight – actually, better to say definitely, even if they weren't expecting one yet. She would make sure it happened. She glanced up toward Sora, who was acting normal now – much to Riku's chagrin. It amused her sometimes to think that Riku was the one who tended to act clingier. It wasn't like Sora was going anywhere. There was no reason to rush.

She shook her head of those thoughts. The boys could certainly handle their own relationship, and Sora was pretty good at talking about things for a boy, so if it became an issue he would confront him on it. She cleared her throat and asked, "So, do you have any idea where we're staying?"

Sora scratched at the back of his head and shrugged ruefully. "Not really. We could stay at the palace, or in the village – kinda rather be in the village. It's less stuffy – though we have to drop in to at least say 'Hi' to Mulan and Shang and the others."

She glanced at Riku, who looked faintly curious. She raised an eyebrow at him questioningly. He shrugged, but said, "The village was a pile of ash and rubble when I was here."

She briefly caught Sora's scowl and hoped that would get cleared up. Apparently something about that made Sora at least annoyed. Well, she would be annoyed as well if she had been there and Riku hadn't said a thing. "I think staying in a village would be okay. What do they have for a hotel?"

"I dunno." Sora cocked his head, looking thoughtful. "I was bunking with the soldiers the first time we were there, and it was burnt down pretty quickly even then."

"Ah," Kairi said diplomatically, then smiled, shrugging the detail off. "We'll just have to find out then!"

"Something the great Sora doesn't know? Amazing," Riku said dryly. He sounded off – she eyed him for a moment. Not that the comment itself wasn't half expected, but his tone sounded a bit too harsh. Perhaps because Sora _wasn't_ acting the same as he was in terms of frustration? She shook her head. That was looking into their relationship too much. Maybe he just disliked revisiting the places he had been.

She saw Sora actually work to control his tongue and was surprised. Rarely did he make an effort – and then it was usually because he knew what he said would be insulting or hurtful. She resolved to get each of them alone within the next couple of days – as much as she liked seeing Sora making the effort, he wasn't very good at keeping his tongue – Riku was better, but he tended to say things even after he had thought about them, knowing his friend would be angry at him and he would probably end up getting hurt as well. Sometimes she believed there was at least a little bit of a masochist in Riku.

"Why don't we just go down?" She said while Sora struggled to find something to say. She found relieved blue eyes looking over at her and couldn't stop her heart from speeding up just the tiniest bit. So they weren't dating and wouldn't ever be again – some part of her would always look at Sora a bit different for being her first love. She pushed it down however, ignoring Naminé's sigh and just smiled back at Sora in understanding.

"Fine," Riku muttered, and Sora set the transporter.

* * *

Kairi had managed to get Sora to go for a walk. This wasn't as hard as she would have thought it would be, and at least it stopped the eerie silence. Both boys seemed as if they wanted to say something, and a couple of times she had seen Riku take a step forward, arms lifting slightly – and then it fell back to his side and he stopped. They had seemed so happy about coming here before. Apparently on second thought – or first actual thought for all she knew – they reconsidered.

She glanced around the cave they had wandered into, and she looked curiously at the small shrines of differing colors in the walls. "So, what happened the last time you were here? With Riku?"

"It's not that big of a deal," Sora muttered, but she could tell he was upset. "Until he started being an idiot I was ready to forget it but... It's hard not to say anything to him about it. Especially when he wants me to."

"Maybe you two should just spar? Usually when you're having difficulties talking that eases the tension, right?" She frowned when there wasn't an answer and turned to find him looking away from her and studying the walls. "Sora?"

His shoulders slumped. "I don't think it would help. We already fought here once."

"What?" She walked around to peer into his face. Which was hard since he had his eyes lowered and his spikes needed to be cut – the longest ones in front were beginning to get in his eyes when he lowered his head like that.

"Well, he was dressed like Organization XIII!" Sora protested, looking away and crossing his arms.

"And you... attacked him?" Kairi asked incredulously. She had thought_Riku_ had been the one to do something wrong. Then she paused. "Wait, I thought you hadn't seen him before all three of us were together again."

"I didn't know it was him! He didn't say anything!" Sora was mixing his glare with a pout and it wasn't a good combination. Adorably awkward, but still not so good.

"So... are you mad at him?" Kairi asked, frowning.

"Not really. Not for that. Just, in the past few hours, he started acting like this." He let his arms drop, looking confused and Kairi sighed. Riku was too complicated sometimes.

"I'd say leave him alone to sort it out, but knowing Riku, he would probably get more grouchy the longer we let him be." She wondered if she could get Riku to go on a walk – probably not.

"But what's his problem?" Sora asked, running a hand through his spikes and tugging at one in frustration.

"Well, it couldn't have been that fun for him to be able to see you but not be able to talk to you – maybe he thinks you'll be mad at him now that we're here." Kairi shrugged. It could also be he was just reminded of the fact he had given in to darkness – usually he was quieter and less snappy when he was brooding, but not always. Trying to end on an upbeat note Kairi added, "I would say maybe he felt guilty about the fight, but... Well, this is _Riku_."

Sora rolled his eyes, grinning suddenly. "If he didn't want to fight he could have portalled out of there, or just run again. I'm pretty sure he enjoyed it."

"Well, since he wasn't going to hurt you badly and he was _obviously_ too good to really be hurt, he probably thought of it as an impromptu spar." Kairi giggled, knowing that while Riku probably hadn't disrespected Sora's skills, he did have an opinion about his own.

"Some spar," Sora grumbled. "I would have liked it better if all the Rapid Thrusters hadn't been there. I kinda thought it was Riku as the fight went on, you know."

"Of course you did. The same way I believed Naminé that it was Riku even after I had seen what he looked like. Our hearts are connected. We can always tell, Sora – as long as we're actually listening. Some of us have more of a problem with that than others." Kairi began to walk away as she spoke, grinning as she heard Sora's shoes shift behind her.

"Hey! Kairi! What's that supposed to mean?" He demanded. She giggled – and ran, knowing she couldn't really outrun him and also hoping he wouldn't cheat so she would at least have enough time to get outside.

The cave walls passed by and the outside loomed close. Sora was catching up much to quickly. She hoped she was close enough and dove for the entrance just as he shouted and tried to grab her. She landed in the snow and grinned, turning over to see Sora's confused expression. She grinned and threw the snowball. He was too shocked to dodge the first one, and there was snow in his eyes at the second.

But then he was dodging under one and into a roll behind her – where he proceeded to stuff snow down the back of her shirt. She shrieked loudly, turning many of the nearby villagers in their direction. "You cheater!"

"It's not cheating if there aren't any rules!" Sora laughed – and choked as Kairi through her next snowball into his open mouth. She grinned, unrepentant. That's what he got for not paying attention.

It was a blur of snow after that, as they headed into the village, forcing villagers to duck down under the barrage of snowballs. They hid behind houses – and Sora cheated again by looking down from on top of the houses until she did shout out a "No using those abilities!" rule, which he shouted was unfair since he was the only one who had them and she replied it was fair because of that fact.

They were both on opposite sides of the main street, hiding behind corners of houses and throwing as many snowballs as they could without getting hit when Riku came into view. Kairi paused a moment, and saw Sora peak out. Their eyes met as Riku scowled and looked back and forth from one form half hidden in shadows to the other. "What are you two doing? The whole village – "

Riku was cut off when two snowballs hit him in the face. He spluttered, spit it out, and glared as they came giggling into view. "What the hell was that for?"

Kairi felt torn. They had just been trying to have fun, but Riku wasn't really in the mood. She stepped closer, intending to apologize – and Riku waited until she was just a few feet away before scooping down and raising his snow toward her – and then they were both hit.

"I thought you were smarter than that, Kairi. Like Riku would let us get away with hitting him like that and _not_ throw back." Sora was grinning, already spinning another ball of snow in his hand.

Kairi glanced at Riku. He nodded. She took a step forward, scooping up snow slowly and grinning slyly at Sora. He tilted his head and _smirked_ at them both, saying to the unspoken thoughts on their faces, "You have to catch me first."

Then he threw his snowball and twirled around – and like the great big cheater he was, he used quick run. Kairi glanced over at Riku to see him wiping snow out of his eyes. "Truce until that cheater up there is defeated."

Riku's grin was almost feral. "He's going to wish he had never _seen_ snow."

Kairi laughed and began to run after Sora, who was now a distant figure actually on the slop up the mountain. Well, at least they wouldn't be bothering the villagers anymore. "I think I will too. We're not exactly dressed for the weather."

"Warm clothes later. Kicking his ass now," Riku growled, quickly overtaking her, his eyes on the distant figure – who appeared to be waving at them. Kairi narrowed her eyes. Sora was going to regret that.

* * *

Kairi gasped in the thin air of the mountain and let herself collapse to the ground briefly. She would have been worried about getting her clothes wet with snow – but they were already soaked. She glanced over at the boys and rolled her eyes as she saw Riku had decided the best way to "punish" Sora was to sit on his back and press his face into the cold snow. They were all very wet at this point, and she was pretty sure even Sora's magical clothes didn't protect him from wet and the freezing air.

"Riku, you need to let him breathe eventually," Kairi panted as she caught her breath. Riku grunted, but released Sora's head – and Sora lifted his head and tried to glare ineffectually over his shoulder. It probably would have worked better if he hadn't been shivering just a bit. Kairi frowned worriedly. They all should get in soon – and frankly, Sora had actually hid himself under the snow at one point.

"I think we should get back where it's warm," She suggested, her teeth chattering. Now that they had stopped moving, she felt a lot colder.

"It's his fault, bringing us all the way up here," Riku grumbled – but he didn't seem to be in bad spirits the way he had earlier.

"Sorry," Sora offered, more to her than to Riku. "None of us are dressed for the weather."

"No, we aren't," She agreed as Riku stood up and stepped away from Sora. He offered a hand to the brunet teen, who took it tiredly. Kairi had to grin at that – at least they had managed to wear him out.

"You two are soaked," Riku commented. Kairi pouted, eyes narrowed as she looked at him. After the first snowballs Sora had hit him with, he had rarely been hit, and was in fact, mostly dry.

"Jerk," Sora muttered – and sneezed. Riku smirked.

"Aw, is wittle Sora sick?" Riku cooed. Kairi giggled and clapped her hands to her mouth at Sora's injured look. When the Keyblade was summoned to Sora's hands she rolled her eyes.

"I'm going down to get warm before I get pneumonia. Come down and join me when you realize that being raised on a tropical island doesn't make for good cold resistance." They didn't seem to be listening to her, as Sora was now lunging at his boyfriend, who was continuing to mock him mercilessly as Sora sneezed again. She hoped one of them _did_ get sick.

* * *

Three days after the snowball incident Kairi regarded the door to Riku and Sora's room curiously – right alongside Riku, who was looking more than a little annoyed. She was now beginning to think that despite what the villagers would have thought, they should have just given Sora his own room. However, if they had, it probably would have taken them longer to realize he was sick. The first day he had passed it off as just a small cold and they had gone to visit Shang and Mulan – but neither of them had believed it the day before and since then Sora had been restricted to the room he shared with Riku.

Except now that door was locked. Kairi found herself more amused by this than anything else. Mostly because she could think of a perfect solution to this, but Riku seemed to have forgotten it – and Sora apparently had forgotten that would be the solution as well.

"He's just being a brat," Riku complained. "He kicked me out! Said I was fussing. I don't fuss! If he wasn't acting so pathetic I wouldn't keep asking if he needed anything!"

Privately, Kairi was quite sure Sora was doing his best to _not_ act pathetic, as she had seen him a few times trying to act normal and walk around when it was obvious he was not. Riku definitely fussed. Sora was sick, and she was sure he probably enjoyed _some_of the attention – but not to the point Riku took it. "So why haven't you opened it?"

Riku glared at her. She looked at him innocently. "He has the key, Kairi. I told you that."

"Yes, I'm sure he does," She responded patiently. "More than one, in fact."

It was delightful to watch understanding dawn on Riku's face – and she had to laugh as he snarled. Way to the Dawn appeared in his hand and he whipped it forward to point the blue and black tip at the lock. It glowed, and a light hit the lock. Kairi smiled as the sound of the lock turning open could clearly be heard. Riku stomped into his room and she quickly followed, watching as he opened his mouth to growl out, "Sora, you st..."

She followed his gaze and heard Naminé sigh happily. He looked very comfortable, and very quiet. He wasn't even snoring – not that it was surprising, she had been sleeping in the same room with him most of the trip. But while she wouldn't dare call him cute when he was awake, she felt anyone seeing him asleep would have said she was justified in thinking it. She heard Riku sigh and looked over to see that his face had softened.

"Impossible to be mad at him?" Kairi asked, beaming.

Riku snorted and shook his head – but he still spoke softly. "No. I'm still angry – but he needs his sleep."

"Sure," Kairi said knowingly, ignoring his sharp glare. She took the time to look over their room. Not much different than the one she had been given, and there were all of Sora's clothes for the week piled next to the other bed. Kairi blinked, looked again – and clapped a hand to her mouth as she nearly giggled and she felt Naminé's obvious surprise. "Riku, is he sleeping in your bed?"

Riku seemed to freeze and she caught the faintest hint of pink on his cheeks before he lowered his head enough for his silver hair to cover it. "He might be. Who knows why."

_'Somehow I don't think he'll be able to be very angry with Sora when he wakes up,'_ Naminé commented. Kairi smiled and crept out of the room and down the stairs. She would just leave them alone – besides, she wanted to go shopping by herself. They had only gone out shopping here long enough to find someone with extra coats – since apparently the moogle did not carry coats. It had been interesting to see Sora arguing with it about the value of carrying winter coats in a snowy climate.

_'I think Roxas told him to stop. He had a funny look on his face at the end of the conversation and cut himself off a few times,'_ Naminé said and Kairi nodded in silent agreement.

"Do you want to shop? We don't have to do it here. I was planning on leaving the boys a note and going to the Imperial city," Kairi said.

_'By ourself? I don't know, there haven't been Heartless, but... There could still be bandits.'_ Naminé seemed doubtful. Kairi half agreed with her – but she had those daggers, and Riku probably wouldn't even notice she was gone, and Sora was too sick to notice. She felt a pang of hurt at the thought, and knew it wasn't quite true – the city was still a fair distance away.

_'Wait until Sora is better. You might not be able to make it back within a day – probably won't, if you plan to do any amount of shopping. And you can probably buy some things here. The moogle sells jewelry – I've seen Sora wearing some of it.' _Naminé was definitely against the idea. As much as they both wanted to fight, neither one was very good.

"I'm pretty sure that's some kind of specialized jewelry," Kairi mused, thinking about it. Some of it was quite nice – though she had snickered to see Sora wearing an earring the first time she had noticed. He had tried to explain they were magical, but she couldn't help but laugh.

_'The boys still have most of the money, anyway – you can always ask to borrow it ad just have them wander in the same area. Then we can buy them gifts and they won't be angry with us for wandering off,'_ Naminé suggested reasonably, and Kairi sighed.

"Okay, okay... But I'm still going to see what the moogle has. Just in case." There was no response from the other girl, so she assumed that was agreement. Satisfied, Kairi headed toward the moogle's shop.

* * *

Staring at the shops and stalls in front of her, Kairi felt her eyes widening. "Wow. This is... a lot. The Bazaar was too, but this is... very different."

"Yes, it is. Um... Do you two mind if I do some shopping of my own? Alone?" Sora sounded a little nervous and Kairi tilted her head as she looked at him. He had been working on something when they weren't around – she had caught him at it a couple of times. She shrugged, knowing he would tell her when he was ready.

"I don't mind. I need to shop alone too." She grinned at them both and glanced teasingly at Sora. "Presents, you know. And _someone_ has a birthday in a month."

"And_yours_ isn't far behind," Riku reminded her, his eyes lighting up. "I don't see any reason we can't all wander by ourselves for awhile."

Kairi blinked, recognized that look in his eyes, and was glad he wasn't dragging her along with him to help with Sora's present. Most of the time, both boys disliked shopping, but when it came near time for Sora's birthday, and then hers soon after, he was terrible to shop with. Their presents had to be absolutely perfect, and no matter what someone said, somehow he took it as that the present wasn't right, and went at it again. She glanced at Sora, saw him meet her eyes and they both silently acknowledged their luck and fear at the same time – before disappearing into the crowd with a very quick farewell to Riku.

"What would Sora like?" She mused. It was harder to shop for the boys now – plus, she wanted to get him a birthday present, and just get both of them presents in general.

She spotted a shop with jewelry in the window. While she was sure that normally they didn't wear much jewelry, she had seen the jewelry and "armor" that the boys wore. When trinkets and anklets started counting as armor she didn't know – but she didn't plan to argue with Sora about it again. Naminé looked out curiously and said, _'Not much of it is girly, and a lot of it is almost unnoticeable. Maybe some of it will be like what they wear now.'_

Kairi hoped she was correct and stepped into the shop. It was... different. It even just felt different to her, and the hairs on the back of her neck stood up as she stepped further into the shop. A shape appeared from the darkness and she momentarily tensed – but then the shape was a young woman smiling welcomingly at her. "Hello. Welcome. Is there anything in particular you are looking for?"

Kairi hesitated, eyeing the woman. She didn't want to say anything that would sound crazy, but she could at least stick to he basics. "I have these two friends. Boys, and they're... warriors. And while jewelry may not be the best thing to get them, I was thinking there might be something special?"

The woman smiled pleasantly. "No worries. We have some items with... special properties. My brother makes some of them himself. Come this way."

The woman beckoned her forward to the back of the shop and Kairi followed, resisting the urge to grimace as that feeling became stronger – like there was some kind of energy moving around her. Her hands twisted nervously in the material of the coat she had bought. The woman glanced back and glanced at her hands then at her face with evident surprise. "I hadn't realized you were sensitive to the magic. Are you sure you don't want to buy something for yourself?"

Kairi smiled, relieved to have an explanation for the strange feeling. "No, thank you. But maybe one of the boys will wander in later. We're all buying presents for each other today."

"Oh? That's nice of you," The woman commented. "How good friends are your boys? I have this set, and they make for good friendship gifts. Supposedly they connect the two wearing it. Perhaps not useful in battle, but..."

The woman trailed off, peeking nervously from beneath her black hair at Kairi. She had to smile. That sounded like something that they wouldn't mind wearing, and she wouldn't be as nervous about giving it – if they didn't work, it was the symbolism that meant something. "I think that would be perfect for them. They're very good friends."

"Oh good," The woman said, seemingly relieved. She stepped up to a cabinet and pulled out a key. "These are special, so I keep them locked up. I don't want them lost because some thief thinks they look valuable."

The woman took down two armbands, thin and silver with a small gem set in the middle of each. "These two are a set. The gems may change color sometimes – but I'll leave that to your boys to figure out why."

Kairi took them hesitantly and looked them over. Color changing jewels? That didn't sound good. Still, she would give them to her boys. It was probably just a special kind of gem and this was just superstition. Maybe the woman was even trying to get her to pay more for something that really wasn't good quality. But, she didn't think so. It looked nice, and felt nice. "How much?"

"Five hundred munny for the pair," The woman said. Kairi nodded. It was difficult figure to decide if it was expensive or cheap – it depended on how real these bracelets were.

_'I think they're real. At least, it would be nice if they were,'_ Naminé offered quietly. Kairi looked up at the woman, decision made as she passed over some of the money Sora had given her before they had reached the city. "I'll take them."

"Good. If you'll just come up here – " The woman was interrupted as a handsome young man stepped out of the shadows in the back of the shop.

"Wait a moment, sister. I too have something to offer the young woman. A good luck charm that many a young warrior has worn – and all are still alive, a rare enough thing when young men go to war. It is a simple piece – see?" The man stepped forward, displaying a dark silver chain. With strange markings on it. "I don't know what language it is in – but it seems to work, no?"

Kairi hesitated – but her boys could always use a good luck charm. It was the thought that counted, and as long as it wasn't too expensive, she could still go and get other presents that would definitely be useful. "How much?"

"Three hundred munny – I would sell it for more, but there is no guarantee it doesn't wear off after so many others have used it." She glanced at it again. Was it her, or did the markings seem to shine just the slightest bit. Perhaps there was still magic in it after all.

"Okay. I'll take that too," She agreed, a bit more warily. She hoped no one else was going to pop out and offer her anything, But the man just smiled and walked toward the front – the woman behind him. Kairi watched her, a bit puzzled as she noticed her stiff back. Was she having problems with her brother?

"Is something wrong?" Kairi asked softly as she strode forward to match paces with the woman. She was granted a quick smile.

"No, not really. I... Well, we are having a slight family quarrel. Nothing to worry yourself with, I assure you." The woman's smile was bright and friendly and reminded her enough of Sora's that Kairi relaxed almost automatically.

She bought the items without further incident, casting one last glance back at the pair. The man's green eyes met hers and he smiled. She hesitantly smiled back, but as she turned to the woman she could feel a shiver climbing up her back – she just didn't know why. The woman walked her out amiably and she was sent on her way. She glanced at the sky and blinked. She had spent more time in there than she had thought – she would have to hurry if she wanted to buy more presents.

* * *

It would figure that just as she had finished shopping Heartless would appear just as the meeting place for the three of them came into view. She was proud of herself later for how quickly she dropped her items and managed to get her daggers out – and even killed a couple of the smaller ones, though she realized it was much harder when she didn't have a Keyblade in hand – though the one magic spell she had learned worked better than she had thought.

She stumbled back and fell when a neoshadow pounced on her, just managing to bring her hands up, and a ball of bright white light issuing from them, knocking the neoshadow out of view, and hopefully out of existence – but there were three more to take its place. The next moment there was a familiar tall figure in front of her and she scrambled to her feet as Riku knocked the Heartless back and she found she had her first good view of them in awhile. There were many more than there had been in any previous battles since Xemnas had been defeated – they were still around, of course, but usually only in small amounts that the warriors of a particular world could deal with. This was much more than that normal amount.

"Fuck," Riku swore viciously. "There shouldn't be this many. Are you hurt, Kairi?"

She blinked at the question and then shook her head – but his back was to her. "No, I'm fine."

"Nice spell," Riku commented almost absently as he destroyed another wave of Heartless. She just nodded and turned around suddenly, seeing movement out of the corner of her eyes. She trained her eyes on the moving darkness and attacked. She was uncoordinated with the daggers, an inexperienced, but if her friends had learned in battle, so could she. And she hadn't done half bad with the Keyblade that time.

"Kairi, try this!" Riku said sharply, and she turned to have a familiar golden Keyblade thrust into her hands, the flowers decorating it almost seeming to be alive as she touched the hilt. With no other choice, she let the daggers slip, promising to pick them up again later – and then without wondering why or how Riku could give her a Keyblade and still have one of his own she thrust herself at the Heartless.

Even with the Keyblade and her one spell she didn't do as well as she would have wanted. Riku was staying near, but she didn't want to be a burden. But the Keyblade was heavier than she remembered, growing heavier with each swing.

A Neoshadow jumped at her. She blocked and went for a counterattack – but her arm over extended and she could see the Heartless closing in. She cried out as darkness clawed at her and Riku shouted her name. Her heart beat fast, darkness trying to wrap itself around it. But darkness didn't belong in her heart and instead she could almost feel her body and heart separating once again and Naminé shrieking in her mind.

And then the feeling was gone and she collapsed to her knees, panting, staring up at the boy with his back to her – and the two Keyblades in his hand. His hair was very blond. As if hearing her thoughts, Roxas said, "Sora offered to switch while we were shopping. I accepted. Get up, Kairi. Don't let them weaken you."

Roxas's tone was not the friendly comforting voice she wanted, but he offered good advice, even if he was eerily calm about the situation. Then Riku's voice was behind her as she climbed to her feet. "There shouldn't be this many of them."

"Really? I hadn't noticed," Roxas replied dryly. He raised one of his Keyblades and Kairi stifled the urge to gasp as lightning came down, destroying a large mass of Heartless in front of them. She had seen Sora do that – and she supposed if Sora could borrow from Roxas, it worked both ways.

She raised the Keyblade defensively as the Heartless swarmed in. There was definitely something wrong with this. Unless there was some darkness rising in this world there shouldn't be as many Heartless as there were. Or at least that somehow the Heartless were feeding off the world's heart. She didn't see how that was possible.

The battle was slowing – her breath was coming short and fast as she gasped for breath and energy, but at least the Heartless were almost gone. Roxas was destroying them with each stroke, Ultima and Fenrir were blurs in his hands and Kairi almost stopped to stare. His feet barely touched the ground before he was moving into another combo on another clump of Heartless. Riku was doing well, but it was nothing like watching countless hearts drift up around Roxas and disappear into the sky.

Her Keyblade bit into the darkness of a regular Shadow and she whirled around for more as the pink heart floated up behind her – but there was nothing. She blinked and stared, first seeing Riku, breathing hard and scowling as he turned in a circle, searching for unseen enemies. She turned her eyes to Roxas who was breathing as heavily as Riku – but looking perfectly calm as he walked toward her. "There are no more."

"How do you know?" Riku snapped, slowly coming closer, his posture still guarded.

"Because we destroyed them," Roxas answered with a smug smirk. Inside her head, Naminé giggled. Kairi just rolled her eyes. He was either overconfident with their skills – or with his own.

She raised up her hand holding the Keyblade when Roxas's eyes flicked to it curiously. "Riku gave it to me."

"Yes. He did that in the castle," Roxas murmured, looking puzzled and his own Keyblades dissipating as he gently laid a hand on hers. His eyes roamed over its surface as if searching for answers. When she glanced up after his hand had lain there for too long, it was Sora meeting her gaze with a shrug.

"It's interesting. Roxas is thinking about it," Sora told her, taking his hand away from the golden blade. She wondered if he was all Sora, really. He looked too serious, even if they had just endured a battle they shouldn't have. His mouth was turned down into an unfamiliar frown and his eyes slid away from hers when she stared at him, silently questioning.

She was about to ask him what was wrong and could see Riku edging forward with determined eyes when the hiss of metal being unsheathed could be heard. All three turned to look at a shaky group of soldiers in uniform, one having his sword aimed in their general direction, in a way that might have been mildly threatening had his arm not been shaking. "I demand to know who you are."

"We're the ones who just saved your city from being overrun by Heartless," Riku snapped. The soldiers glanced at each other, and a few hands dropped uncertainly from the hilts of their swords.

Sora cleared his throat. "I'm Sora."

Kairi almost fell over in shock as immediately the soldiers relaxed and the leader started apologizing profusely. She glanced at Riku, who was staring at the soldiers with one eyebrow raised in disbelief. They defeated countless Heartless and saved the city, but were apparently counted as a threat... And all Sora had to do to get them to back down was tell them his name? She had known he had friendships with Mulan and Shang, who were apparently high up in the ranks on this world – but she hadn't know his name was that well spread. She glanced at Sora, taking in his surprise. Apparently he hadn't either.

"Well, um... You're forgiven. We're going to go now." Sora had turned away from the soldiers and toward them. "I'm going to find where Roxas dropped our stuff. Then we're going home."

Riku nodded, and Kairi studied them both. The slight emphasis on home put a chill down her back. Her suspicions were confirmed when Riku replied, "We'll go back to the village and start packing."

Kairi sighed and went to collect the boxes and packages she had dropped. Her eyes went up to the study the sky where so many hearts had just disappeared. The stars were just beginning to appear in the evening sky. One twinkled brightly in her eyesight before dimming. She squinted but couldn't see it anymore. Probably when it became darker she could look for it again. Despite herself she had to smile. At least the stars were still shining.

* * *

The ride home had been tenser than she would have liked. Her sleep had been uneasy and plagued with dreams she could only remember as burning yellow eyes and the sun being blotted out by darkness. She told herself it was just the effect of having fought her second big battle. But the boys were affected as well and they had been through larger battles.

Riku was sleeping just as uneasily – and Sora was barely sleeping at all. He had slept just once and woken up with a shout of denial as they flew back through gummi space, stopping only once – by her orders. They had needed to get out of the gummi ship for a few hours. She had hoped she could convince Sora to tell her about his dream. But whenever she tried he went pale and tight lipped. By Riku's increasingly frustrated and concerned expressions as they flew toward home, not even he had better luck. She couldn't imagine what he could have dreamt about that was making him withdraw from both of them.

As the gummi ship grew closer to their destination, she hoped seeing home would snap Sora out of it. She peered up from the screen and out the window, her eyes squinting for that first glimpse of Destiny Islands. Her hands were tight on the edge of her seat, feeling unaccountably happy with the thought of seeing their home again and her face stretching into a delighted smile as she waited.

A minute passed. Then two. Sora had slowed the gummi ship. Kairi felt her heart plummet. There was no world in front of her. There was nothing. Just empty space. She glanced over at her brunet friend. His head was bowed and his knuckles clutching the arms of the pilot's chair tightly enough that they were turning white. "Sora?"

Riku echoed her a moment later when silence answered, his voice concerned. "Sora?"

"It's gone," She heard him choke out. She blinked back immediate tears, denying it inwardly and stared at him, inwardly pleading at him to take it back. Instead, he stood up and scrambled out of the room. Her eyes followed him and she continued staring at the door, willing him to come out and tell her it was fine. He had made a mistake. They had somehow managed to make a wrong turn, that was it.

She turned hopeful eyes toward Riku. He didn't meet her gaze and she resented the fact that his bangs allowed him to hide so easily. "Riku... He... We're just in the wrong place, right?"

"We should get out of here," Riku replied evasively, and took Sora's chair. Kairi stared at him.

She closed her eyes for a moment and felt Naminé sharing her pain. She didn't open her eyes as she asked quietly, "And they're all gone? Again?"

It wasn't the same this time. They couldn't have changed it then. This time, if they hadn't gone on vacation, it would still be there. For all they knew, someone had just been waiting for them to leave before opening their world to darkness once again. In the end, their world was gone and they had failed their families.

"Yes," Riku answered shortly. She stood up, understanding he needed to deal with it himself before he could help them. She walked out of the room. She stared at their doorway, raising her hand to open it – and letting it fall away. Sora was in there. She didn't know if she could handle him being depressed. He was always the one who held them up.

She sat down in the hallway, and couldn't think of how they would get their world back somehow. All she could think about was Selphie and Tidus playing in the sand, or her adopted parents clutching her worriedly when she had come back – and how they all must have looked when the darkness came for them.

* * *

End of Chapter Six. Next chapter will have some angst, but being that it's the three of them... Well, the three of them together can't be angsty even for a chapter. But finally we get into the adventure part of the plot!


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Disney, or Final Fantasy.

Author's Notes: Special thanks to KitsuneSam for reminding me about enabling anonymous reviews since I had totally forgotten. Sorry guys! If any of you want to review you can now!

* * *

Chapter 7

The controls of the gummi ship didn't look quite the same when he was holding them. Riku had driven it before – but not for so long. He glanced toward the door separating him from his two friends and scowled. He didn't like the fact they had both kept to themselves – it wasn't right. Especially Sora, who had come out of their room only to use the bathroom. Trying to talk to him didn't work either – he slept in the cockpit at night, under the control panel and it was impossible to get him out. He didn't want to talk. He was also acting like a brat while doing it.

He understood not wanting to talk – he had enjoyed the first day of silence at the controls to sort out his thoughts and feelings on their world being destroyed... again. He felt angry, mostly, that someone had touched their world. He wasn't blaming any of them – because going on a vacation didn't make it their fault. He would have thought Sora would have moved from grieved and sad to angry pretty quickly – but he hadn't. He was set in his guilt.

Riku frowned as he stared at the upcoming world and tried to remember a time when Sora had felt this badly about something and what had been done. There hadn't been anything on this big of a scale, but he was pretty sure the few times Sora had felt guilty over anything Kairi had solved it by long talks – and then hitting him when that didn't work. Riku was pretty sure he did it the opposite way. Hit first, scuffle around, and then yell at him a bit before actually talking. It worked better than Kairi's way and was shorter. Except he didn't know if simply knocking some sense into him would do any good now. If Sora was determined to angst over this, he probably would. He had a stubborn streak that put his own to shame.

Too bad angst and Sora didn't go together and Riku was determined to snap him out of it and direct his emotions toward whoever had done this. If Sora had gotten their world back once, they could all do it again, and Sora needed to be reminded of this. That feeling in the back of his mind of slowly moving darkness far away was gone – now the darkness was everywhere. Someone had done this, and they would find out who.

Kairi could probably be persuaded out of her own rut. Either by way of getting her to help him with Sora, or after Sora was back on his own path. Riku sighed as he stopped the gummi ship and set the transporter. And they might as well start here. It was the most neutral world he could think of – Radiant Garden held too many memories for him, and too many half remembered images for Kairi. He had thought of going to the King's castle – but he wasn't ready to land there and say he needed help. He wasn't going to admit, even to King Mickey, that he couldn't even help his best friends. They would visit there only after Sora and Kairi were back to their own selves.

That was why they floated over Atlantica. There was the whole ocean to be alone with them in. He stood from the chair and stalked to the door and opened it, surprised to see Kairi standing up and Sora peeking out of their room, both staring at him. He blinked and the recovered. "Come on. Time to get off."

"Why? What's the point?" Kairi asked, her eyes dim. Riku gritted his teeth. No wonder Sora always brought him out of his brooding sessions.

"Because the gummi ship's going to explode if you two fill it with anymore angst," He snapped. "Now move!"

Kairi did, mostly out of shock. Sora was actually summoning up anger. Good, that was better than looking like someone had killed his puppy and told him it was his fault. He reached a hand forward and dragged Sora forward. "Come on, we don't have all day."

"Really? Did you have somewhere else to be?" Sora asked, glaring and a lost sneering. He resisted the urge to punch him for being an idiot. He was affected by their world being destroyed to.

"Stop being a jerk," He muttered before he could stop himself, and pushed his friend into the transporter as those blue eyes widened in shock and disbelief. He could already hear the "hypocrite!" on Sora's tongue... or something like it. Sora would probably actually find another way to say it. Which might start the fight he wanted, but the gummi ship wasn't the place to have it.

He stepped into the transporter and expected to find Sora ready to at least yell at him when he appeared in the giant clamshell. Instead he saw Kairi sitting on a rock, head lowered – and a flash of a gray-blue dolphin tail in the distance. "Sora!"

The boy didn't glance back. Riku's shoulders slumped and he drifted over to Kairi's rock. She glanced at him but he didn't acknowledge it. He was failing his best friends. Again. Their world was gone – that wasn't the end of everything. They could fix it. Except he had to convince Sora they could fix it, since Riku wasn't going to leave his friends behind. For that matter he didn't have Sora's luck at making friends and having clues and explanations fall into his lap.

He was actually grateful they hadn't been on their world this time. Last time the three of them had ended up separated, in more ways than one. He had sunk into the darkness and ended up at Hollow Bastion, Kairi's body and heart had ended up totally separate, and Sora had landed in Traverse town with a big key and a sudden responsibility. Sometimes, (actually, most of the time, now that he thought about it) he wanted to go back and punch his younger self. Not just for opening himself to the dark – but for missing the part where Sora had told him flat out that they were traveling to find Kairi and him. Instead, he had focused on the part where Sora was evidently enjoying being a hero and had believed Maleficent when she told him he was being replaced.

Sora did enjoy being a hero – because he liked people and he wanted to save them. Riku wanted to wake that part of him up again – they needed him like that now. If it happened to their world, it was happening – or had happened – to others and while Riku was sure there were worlds that could be destroyed without there being a grand design behind it, he didn't think it was possible for their world being destroyed while they were away to possibly be a coincidence.

"We shouldn't have left." The words came out of nowhere from Riku's point of view. He glanced to his side, narrowing his eyes at his friend. Kairi was staring at her lap, her fingers sliding on the scales of her tail.

"This isn't our fault. Someone did this, and we're going to find them," He said firmly, turning slightly to face her better. "Blaming ourselves won't help us. This could even be what he wants us to be doing."

"But if we had been there – " Kairi began to protest.

"Then things probably would be different – but we would have left eventually. This was doomed to happen. If we hadn't gone on vacation we could have easily been called by the King to help with a problem somewhere – and it would have happened then. There is only one person to blame, and it's not us." Riku knew glaring probably wasn't the best way to get his point across, but by the tiny smile forming on Kairi's face it was working anyway.

"Funny to hear _you_ talking about not blaming myself," She replied softly, quirking one eyebrow up and her smile turning a bit sly.

He ducked his head and resisted to urge to fidget. She had a point there. "I guess all of those hits to my head finally did some good."

"Or maybe it was the kisses," She retorted, definitely grinning now.

"That might have helped," He replied, smirking. Too bad he doubted it would work on Sora. "I have to go..."

"Find him. I know. I'll go into the city. Ariel's probably with her husband, but her sister's are nice – especially Adella. And Riku? Thanks." There was still sadness in her eyes, but Riku decided that talking it out with someone else might continue the process he had started.

He snorted and flipped his silver hair away from his face. "Don't get used to it. I'm just filling in until I can pound some optimism back into Sora's skull."

"Good luck. He has a thick head," Kairi replied, flipping off of the rock and swimming toward Atlantica. Riku watched her go, swimming up to keep an eye on her until he was satisfied no Heartless were going to appear and ambush her. His eyes strayed away from her and in the direction Sora had gone – if Sora could manage to find them across worlds and with impossible obstacles in his path, Riku could definitely track his boyfriend in one watery world.

Or so he was still trying to convince himself an hour later at the sunken ship where Sora had first kissed him. He hadn't seen even a trace of the brunet and he had searched all the places he could immediately think of. Sora wouldn't have wandered too far off, no matter what was going on in his mind. Yet, he was nowhere around. He knew this world much better than Riku, and while the older boy was sure he was near, he had the feeling he wouldn't find him until Sora was good and ready.

"Hello there," A feminine voice suddenly said, and he spun around on the deck, his tail scraping against the wood hard enough to make him wince. A woman was floating a few feet away – or rather, a merwoman. Riku narrowed his eyes. There was something off. He smelled darkness, clinging to her like a second skin, "You're new around here, aren't you?"

"I'd say you're not exactly a native yourself," He said coldly, his Keyblade appearing with a faint sound and a flash of light. "And I'm seriously doubting you're the welcoming committee."

She smiled wickedly, flipping a pale pink tail to come closer. "Now, really. Is that anyway to act? All I did was say a little greeting. Nothing wrong with that, now is there?"

"I don't have time for games. What do you want?" His instincts told him to attack. But he held himself back. There was always a chance she was involved in what had happened to the islands – and if so, he needed information before he could take out his frustration on her.

"Want? Why do I have to want something? Perhaps I just came to look at you. See how you were doing after that _tragic_ accident with your world, Keyblade Master." It didn't take him long to cross the distance between them after she stopped speaking. Way to the Dawn was aimed for her throat before she had time to do more than blink. Which was all she did, smiling down at him condescendingly.

"Who are you and what happened to our islands?" He growled, pressing the point into her neck slightly.

"Settle down. Have I threatened you? You'll never learn anything if you don't say please." Her brown eyes had narrowed somewhat and her smile slipped just the slightest. Riku smirked coldly. He was getting somewhere.

"Answer or die." Or destroyed, rather than killed. He was almost sure that this woman was a Nobody. If that were the case, even if she did answer he would have to destroy her. Except he wasn't going to say that while there was a chance she would give him information.

"We-ll. I guess I can compromise. My name is Iaxra. As for the rest – " He expected the attack – had since she said the word "compromise" – and blocked the flash of metal that came toward him, driving them apart.

He stilled his backward movement with his tail and pressed forward, taking a moment to note the odd shape of her weapon. Well, he had seen firsthand that some of the Organization members had the oddest weapons. A pickaxe was better than the sitar Sora claimed one of those he had fought had.

"It's good to know you've set yourself up for failure already. Less disappointment that way," he taunted, waiting for her to take the bait. He swept his Keyblade in under her guard as she moved the pickaxe back to swing.

She grunted and swam out of range, her eyes narrowing at him. He smirked and trailed after her, letting her keep a fair amount of distance between them. He would wind no matter what she did. She smiled back, baring her teeth. "Failure? I don't see how I have indicated this."

"Nobodies aren't made with Xs in their names. If you know enough to take his style, I assume you know enough to know what happened to that bastard." He lunged forward, swimming the way Sora had taught him to move behind her and knock the Keyblade into her unprotected back. "Now, _what happened to my island_?"

"You piece of shit!" She shrieked as she was slammed back. He pressed his advantage, channeling his frustration into the Keyblade until he had her against a wall.

"Answer me," He commanded, one hand gripping the wrist holding the pickaxe, the other drawn back, ready to unleash another set of Keyblade combos onto her.

"If you wish." His hand on the Keyblade tightened as she paused and grinned. "I believe some of your friends last moments looked like_this_."

It was the only warning he had before he was plunged into darkness. Automatically he moved to attack her, not caring that he couldn't see. He had been blindfolded for months. He had fought Roxas with a blindfold on – a little lack of light wasn't going to beat him now.

Something hit his stomach hard and he gritted his teeth not to gasp, his grip loosening marginally – and he felt her wrench out of his grasp. Immediately he shot away from the general area, trying to bring up the general layout up in his mind. Fighting blind in water was a bit different than on land – a lot different – and he would need every advantage his memory could give him.

"You want to know what happened to your island? What happened to your little friends while you and your friends stepped out?" She was laughing out there. His stomach churned as he listened and marked her position. She was laughing that his friends were destroyed. She was trying to make him feel guilty as well. It was too bad she couldn't see his feral smile in the dark. Perhaps she would have realized that_this_ was the wrong Keyblade Master to be trying those tactics on. No one could make him feel guilt better than himself, the efforts of an unoriginal Nobody were nothing compared to that.

"Do you want to know how our leader told us to destroy your world? Or perhaps you want to know which one of those there we convinced to open his heart to the darkness. That's what we need most of the time – a natural born citizen of the world. Like you were. Someone connected to the heart of the world. Of course, you needed no convincing, right? This one took a little work." He followed the sound of her voice carefully. He didn't make a sound, even stilling Way to the Dawn's chain incase it would give him away. Let her talk.

"What? No retorts now, boy? Don't you want to know how he had realized what he had done as the darkness took him – not at all unfrightened. Come now, child. Aren't you going to say a thing?" She was right in front of him now. He could hear her, feel her – and he thrust with the Keyblade. He felt it hit resistance and then push forward – and a moment later, everything was clear once again and the woman was doubled over on his blade.

"Next time, your master should send someone who can do more than talk," He told her coolly as she stared at him, beginning to fade back into darkness. In what was a final move of desperation she struck suddenly with the pickaxe. His eyes widened and he flung himself away, his tail flicking wildly – and felt the point dig into his shoulder.

She and the weapon were gone when he looked up. He clutched his shoulder, cursing under his breath. Blood leaked from between his fingers, floating into the ocean water as he drifted down and he made his Keyblade dissipate to focus his magic. In the next moment there was a potion in his hand. He almost poured it onto his skin before realizing that pouring a liquid out in the ocean wouldn't quite work and put it to his lips instead.

Riku watched the wound, frowning as it stopped bleeding but didn't completely disappear. Where she had hit his stomach with her tail – or so he presumed – stopped aching and some of his exhaustion disappeared but not the wound. His frown turned into a scowl, realizing that in this body he had no pockets to keep his potions in – though that brought to mind where his clothes were since they reappeared when he went back on the gummi ship and if they were really there with him, and therefore his potions.

He decided not to try it if only because it would bring up more questions. He would make another potion later – or better yet, get Sora to heal him when he found the boy. Hopefully an unhealed wound would take the younger boy's attention away from their lack of world long enough for Riku to plan out what to say – it all depended on Sora's state of mind.

The battle had given him some insight on how to find Sora. He was thinking too much, instead of reacting. Usually a good thing, in this case it was detrimental to finding his boyfriend. So he deliberately stopped thinking about where Sora could be, focused simply on the Sora part of it – and swam, changing direction when it suited him. He was determined not to notice anything about where he was going besides to mark landmarks to find his way back – he wasn't going to miss his chance at finding Sora because he became curious about the route. That was if it worked at all.

When the sun was warm on his back and he caught a glimpse of a darker mass against the bright sky, he stopped, staring at the surface of the water in confusion. Obviously it hadn't worked. It wasn't as if they could change back to their other forms so Sora had no reason to be up on the surface. But too curious as to what this world looked like on the surface, he flicked his tail just enough to bring his head above the surface, aqua eyes wide and taking in all of the details.

"Riku?" A voice question and he spun around to face the dark mass – which was apparently a rock. A blue-gray dolphin tail and spiky brown hair could only belong to one boy. Riku grinned as Sora gaped at him and took the other boy's confusion as a chance to pull himself up onto the rock – and almost fell back into the water when his arm screamed in protest.

"Shit," He hissed, shifting on the rock to bring his tail all the way on and clutching his left shoulder with his right hand. Another hand intruded, laying gentle fingers over his and then slipping them under.

"What happened?" Sora asked as he summoned Ultima. Riku watched the tip glow green before his shoulder did the same. He took his hand away as the wound disappeared – and was surprised when Sora didn't remove his.

"A Nobody. She wasn't that good, but she managed a lucky strike as I destroyed her," Riku answered, watching the brunet carefully. There were shadows under his eyes that weren't usually there and he was unusually unenergetic and listless.

"Here? Why?" Sora looked honestly puzzled and Riku barely stopped himself from rolling his eyes. Whatever his mood was, it was definitely still Sora. He wasn't stupid – he just didn't think sometimes and wasn't as paranoid as Riku.

"She had to do with our island being destroyed." He watched the reaction the younger boy had carefully. He saw the hand withdrawing from his shoulder to mirror the sudden blank expression on Sora's face and snapped up a hand to grip his wrist firmly, drawing Sora's startled gaze onto his face.

"Sora. Agonizing over it won't do a thing. It wasn't our fault, and it definitely wasn't yours." Despite his words, Sora was trying to glance away, eyes sliding from his. His grip on Sora's wrist tightened when the other boy tugged it gently, a gentle wordless request to release his hand. The brunet's mouth tightened into an angry line at his own silent denial. Despite the fact that they were burning with anger, he was quite glad to see Sora's eyes meet his again.

"Let. Go," Sora growled and Riku hoped that his reaction wasn't visible, because Sora sounded much more frightening than he had any right to.

"No. You never leave me alone when I'm sulking and I'm not going to leave you alone." He half expected Sora to push him away violently – Sora could go from one emotion to another more quickly than anyone had a right to and he was sure rage was the feeling of the moment.

Sora surprised him by continuing to glare for a moment before pulling _him_ forward by the hold he had on Sora's wrist, and suddenly there were brunet spikes tickling his cheek as his boyfriend's face hid in his shoulder. He tensed automatically, suddenly frozen. His eyes widened, but he didn't dare move except to move the hand on Sora's wrist to his back.

He wasn't crying – not yet, not that he could feel. But he half expected the brunet to start, or to yell, or to do something besides take deep breaths and have a bruising grip on his arm and waist. So when the brunet started to talk, his voice low and muffled by Riku's skin, he listened intently, searching for clues as to what he was supposed to do. "I had a dream about it. A dream about the Heartless spilling out from the heart of our world. After the Heartless attack in the city at Land of the Dragons. I should have done something them, bought faster engines or... I don't know! There has to have been something I could have done!"

"Sora," he whispered helplessly, for a moment confused. His fingers ran down Sora's back, miraculously free of most scars thanks to the magic of Curaga and potions. There were a few from childhood, and some from in the last couple of years that he could only imagine why they hadn't healed properly. His other hand went into Sora's hair as he thought – and then jerked back on the spikes to bring Sora back into eye contact.

"Sora," he repeated seriously. "This was not your fault. You can't know if the dream was prophetic or if it was only to inform you of what had _already _happened."

"I had dreams last time," Sora admitted quietly. Riku groaned in frustration.

"This isn't the same thing at all! You were just getting the Keyblade then and I was the one to blame for our world then! Of _course_ you had dreams before hand then, our hearts are connected! There was no way the Keyblade could show you the possibility of what was going to happen this time! Me and Kairi were both with you! There was no danger to us and... None of us are connected enough to anyone else back there that we would feel like we were missing a piece of ourselves." It would be a bad idea to tell Sora at this point that he was theorizing on why the Keyblade had been able to show him things last time. He was pretty sure it was true – he didn't actually have evidence, just his feelings.

"Then why did I see it after the fact?" Sora asked, frustrated. Riku chalked up a point to his side that Sora _was _viewing it as seeing it after it had happened. The hand still in Sora's hair moved up to tug on one spike, stifling a grin as his hand was batted away and Sora began to attempt to "fix" his messy spikes.

"Maybe because its your world. We all felt it to some extent, I think. An urgency, something missing. You're just more connected than I am, and Kairi I guess just doesn't get dreams." He let his free hand drift back down to lie on the warm rock, smirking as he watched Sora give up on his hair and give him a piercing look.

"Why? Why aren't you as connected?" Sora was giving him one of those serious looks that always made Riku want to squirm. They were so rare but he always felt as if Sora was looking right at his soul. The younger boy had no idea the effect he could have.

"Because... I could live on any world, and as long as you and Kairi were there, it would be home. I loved our world, but mostly for the memories it had." He knew he had unsettled his boyfriend with his candor and added smoothly, "Besides, we'll get it back. If _you_ managed to do it by yourself then how hard can it be?"

He let that sink in for a moment, and then at the very moment he saw Sora work out his meaning and his eyes flash as he got ready to take umbrage at the remark, he pushed Sora hard with both hands and grinned as the boy tumbled backwards into the water, a flash of his slate gray tail the last Riku saw.

He began to laugh when the brunet surfaced, glaring at him with his mouth set close to a pout. He stopped laughing when the boy disappeared, realizing that he was in the more vulnerable position now. He began to slip into the water – only to be tackled from behind and be slammed into it instead. There were thinner but muscled arms clasped around his arms and torso, immobilizing his upper body, and thrashing his tail did no good as his friend laughed in his ear.

He forgot briefly about his predicament at the sound, feeling triumphant. He had managed to do it – not that he had actually expected he wouldn't be able to. Sora was easier to get set back on a more optimistic setting than either he or even Kairi were.

Sora's arms loosened but didn't let go as they drifted down and Riku took the opening to turn carefully so he was facing the boy. Riku felt his breath catch as the boy smiled at him. "Thanks, Riku."

"Always," he answered immediately. He let them just drift down for a few seconds, closing his eyes and enjoying the feel of his skin against Sora's. But they couldn't stay that way forever and he opened his eyes and his mouth, ready to say something – and was interrupted when portals opened up around them and spit out a couple dozen unfamiliar Nobodies.

"Hey, they have swimming ones now!" Sora exclaimed.

Riku glanced at him incredulously. "This should be a bad thing, Sora. We don't like new types, remember?"

"Sure, sure. Still, they look kind of neat," Sora said. Riku eyed the Nobodies. They looked like snakes. Snakes with long almost wing shaped fins on their heads and a Nobody symbol on a round bulb at the tip of their tails, but they still looked like snakes. Riku concluded that Sora had strange opinions on what was neat and summoned Way to the Dawn.

He kept track of where Sora was in general, but he knew he wouldn't need any help. Besides, the new Nobodies were quicker than he would have thought possible and those wing things _hurt_ when they slammed into him. It took him a few minutes to memorize their fighting style and abilities. He did hear Sora growl in frustration at one point and there was a flash of light. Assuming Sora had called Thundaga, Riku avoided an attack where one swirled around him quickly and tried to stun him with its wings.

They were fast nuisances, and in frustrations, he aimed for anything he could get – and found a weakness in the bulbs on their tails. It put them off balance when they were hit, allowing him to get in a combo or two. The problem was the things seemed to have a pack mentality, actually protecting one another when one was stunned. However, he noticed after he had cut down about half of them, they were more sluggish. It was interesting, and he would bet they didn't somehow gather power from each other. He didn't have much time for pondering about it.

Just as he was laying a lightning fast combo onto the last two, he caught a flash of red. He forced himself to finish the two before quickly turning to look – and finding that Sora's tail had turned a deep red and there were two Keyblades in his hand as he tore into a new pack of Nobodies that had appeared.

_Valor_.

He remembered it. Sora had briefly explained it, but it drained his power fast and he usually had to take energy from Goofy to make it last for any amount of time. Apparently Sora had decided a little drain was worth destroying the Nobodies faster. Riku had to admit it was powerful. Ultima and Oathkeeper were in his hands and it seemed they would barely touch one Nobody before it vanished, its form destroyed. It was violent, and brutal, and Sora's arms were practically a blur as he darted under over and between Nobodies, leaving only fading forms behind him.

Riku's mouth was dry and Way to the Dawn was only loosely clasped in his hand. His eyes were trained on the twisting form above him and he couldn't imagine anything more beautiful. Sora was everywhere at once, blocking with Oathkeeper while he attacked with Ultima.

He forced his tail to move, driving him closer. He shouldn't be just watching. He should be helping. He could be part of the deadly dance, weaving Way to the Dawn between the other two Keyblades. Yet, some part of him wanted to just sit back and watch. Sora was in no danger, and the numbers of Nobodies were quickly dwindling

Just as Sora was finishing off the last one he flashed back to his normal gray tail and Riku watched carefully. He half expected, despite having seen him change easily from one to the other before, that Sora would at least pause a moment and be forced to back away. Instead, his swing of two Keyblades turned into the swing of one and dealt the final blow to the last Nobody.

Now Riku approached, circling behind his boyfriend for a moment, eyeing him critically for wounds. There were a few cuts, and Riku was quite ready to conjure a potion – but Sora's Curaga took care of them, and a few bruises he had picked up as well. The skin healed up before his eyes, the blood drifting away and dissipating in the salty water. His eyes lingered on Sora's chest as his boyfriend turned to face him, still breathing hard from his exertion.

"Nice fight," He commented, his lips curving into a smirk. Sora blinked – and then laughed, startling Riku. He further startled him when he suddenly snapped out an arm and tugged Riku close, pressing their lips together. He half expected it to be rough, but it wasn't. Despite the way he had pulled him forward, Sora's lips were gentle on his and his hand loosened on his arm to slide up in a slow caress while his other arm circled around to Riku's waist. Riku kissed back, surprised and letting Sora set the pace while his heart fluttered in joy and his eyes slid closed.

No matter how many times they kissed, Sora kissing him would always surprise him just a little. Even the gentle press of lips and the barely there pressure of the kiss practically melted him then and there. After everything that had happened, part of him couldn't believe Sora wanted him. These tiny moments reminded him that it was real.

Sora drew back first and Riku took a moment to compose his thoughts before opening his eyes. They almost immediately narrowed as he saw Sora looking just a bit smug. "Something you want to say?"

"At least I can remember how to swim and kiss at the same time," Sora said. Riku stared a moment, and could feel Sora's tail brushing against his – and realized the only reason he hadn't slipped away from Sora was the arm around his waist. His own tail had stilled the instant Sora's lips touched his. For a moment he wanted to push Sora away and snap back at the teasing – but he had a better idea almost immediately.

"Can you?" he asked slyly, and saw Sora's eyes widen. Riku didn't give him a chance to reply, instead diving in for another taste, this time leading them into a more heated exchange and insistently running his tongue against Sora's lips. It didn't take long before the both of them were grappling for dominance with their tongues and trying to distract each other with hands sliding from shoulders and waists up their chests.

Riku forgot what the point of the exchange was supposed to be when Sora broke away suddenly and attacked his neck. He jerked his head away slightly when his boyfriend bit him gently and groaned as he began to suck. He tugged at Sora's spiky hair, which could have been taken as him pulling the other boy away if he wasn't at the same time baring his pale neck further.

"Harder in water," he heard Sora murmur and he ran a hand down his tanned chest to flick his nipples gently, making the boy hiss against his throat.

"Yeah. Makes you wonder how they – " He broke off when Sora moved from his neck to nibble at his ear and writhed beneath him, barely noticing that they were now hitting the sandy ocean floor.

"N-not going to find out," Sora muttered and Riku smirked at the stutter – caused by one of his hands dragging harshly down the other boy's back. He drew him away from his ear to smash their lips together.

"Probably should do it as humans first," Riku said agreeably when they finally broke apart, both panting. He was pleased he had at least been able to keep the conversation in his head, since Sora was giving him a partly glazed questioning look. "Sex, Sora."

"What?" Sora blinked, looking stunned. Riku rolled his eyes at the boy above him and leaned up, sliding his elbows back to balance on as he waited for Sora to remember. The boy stared at him for a few moments – and then he blushed and muttered, "Oh. Yeah."

He wasn't sure whether to tease Sora more, or ask for clarification as to what the "Yeah" was referring to. Instead, he did neither as he noticed they were on the ground and crowed triumphantly. "Ha! I'm not the only one who forgot how to swim."

He was surprised to see Sora grin. "Who says I did?"

Riku glared at him. They weren't up there anymore, and there was no way Sora could really be trying to bluff him. It was obvious he had lost. "Be serious, Sora."

"I am. How do you think you ended up on the bottom, Ri-ku?" Sora darted up and out of his reach before he could even think about how to respond. He stared at his friend and just rolled his eyes as Sora stuck his tongue out. It didn't matter, he would find a way to get the other boy back later – and he had at least had some time alone with him.

"So, the new Nobodies. How about Flippers?" Sora asked.

Riku raised an eyebrow incredulously. "Are you kidding? They probably have their own name."

"Well, I think they look like their name is Flippers," Sora responded stubbornly.

"That's stupid," he retorted. He couldn't actually think of a better name, but he was not calling those things such a childish name.

They continued to bicker about the name as they swam back towards Atlantica. In the end, they turned it into a race – Riku won, though Sora claimed he played dirty. Which was technically true, but it didn't matter as Riku had won anyway. There were no more Nobody attacks, and nobody brought up what they were going to do quite yet. Riku knew what they would be doing. He and Sora and Kairi would inform the King, and all of Sora's friends – and then they would go search for who had destroyed their world.

Finally, they would eliminate him.

* * *

That was the end of chapter seven. Please Review if you liked it... or if you didn't!


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything Disney or Final Fantasy.

* * *

Chapter 8

Sora, curled up tightly on the bed in the gummi ship, sighed as he heard Kairi giggling. "I swear he does this on purpose."

"Knowing Riku? He probably does," she responded and he lifted his head when her bed squeaked and he saw her sitting up. All three beds were squished together thanks to lack of room, and this caused problems since Riku was the most restless sleeper of them all.

"Besides, sometimes you have nightmares and... Well. You sort of curl up and..." she trailed off, looking uncomfortable and he felt a flash of guilt. He knew he had nightmares – they all did, it was one reason he liked sleeping near the other two, but he hadn't know his nightmares were bothering them.

"I'm not waking you guys up am I? Screaming or something?" He didn't remember ever waking up screaming from a nightmare but it could happen, he was sure.

"No. In fact any noises you make are usually low. It's more the fact that you aren't making noises and sort of, um, shiver a lot. It's a little disturbing since if you're that quiet, it has to be bad. But usually you calm down if one of us touches you, so Riku is making sure you don't have them?" She smiled hesitantly and he grinned back, carefully squirming out of Riku's sleeping grasp, stopping in exasperation when he was clung to tighter. Kairi giggled lightly and clapped her hands to her mouth in an attempt to muffle them.

"Riku," Sora grumbled, poking his boyfriend in his rubs. Riku absently slapped at his hand before cracking his eyes open to slits. Sora waited quietly for a few moments for Riku to get his bearings and rolled his eyes as Riku promptly shut his eyes again and wrapped both arms back around the thinner waist in front of him.

"Riku! Get off," he said, pushing at the heavier boy. "I swear I'll use Thundaga."

"Not in the gummi ship you won't," Kairi put in warningly and Sora rubbed at his head sheepishly and shrugged.

"Blizzaga then," he said firmly, calling Ultima.

"You'll get the beds wet when it melts," Riku muttered into his thigh. Kairi didn't bother muffling her giggles this time.

Shooting annoyed glances between them he hit Riku gently across the back of his head with the Keyblade. "We have to get up and start the ship moving."

"Kairi can do it. I'm comfortable." He could feel Riku smirking as he spoke. Sora narrowed blue eyes and his eyes flicked over to Kairi grinning unrepentantly and then the edge of the bed. Riku had the middle bed, but they were mostly on Sora's. He moved one leg carefully and braced it at the edge of the bed while one hand lifted up to land on the wall. The soft material beneath them bunched and shifted as he pushed off hard with both limbs, rolling them over the edge.

He made sure to flip them so that Riku ended up on the bottom, gasping as Sora's small frame landed on him. He grinned in response. He was small and short, but he definitely had enough muscle mass so that he wasn't as light as he looked. He "accidentally" drove a knee into Riku's stomach as he made to stand.

There was a breathless snarl of anger from behind him and he found himself tackled before he had taken two steps. Sora yelped in surprised and caught his body with outstretched arms before his face would have painfully met the metal floor. Unfortunately it met it anyway a moment later when Riku kicked his hands out from under him and plopped down to straddle his back.

"That," Riku crooned slyly, "wasn't very nice."

"Neither are you," Sora retorted, and Riku yelped as fire suddenly swirled around them. The instant there was a shift of weight Sora flung himself back, wincing as his head cracked back into Riku's and the other boy let out a string of oaths. Yet, he leapt forward and heard the tell tale sound of Riku's bare feet as he ran back. Sora shifted his weight and turned, Keyblade up and ready and a grin on his face to answer the cocky smirk on Riku's as Way to the Dawn made an appearance.

"Hey! Rule number three!" Kairi shouted and Sora's grin slipped as he remembered that Kairi had been making a list of rules. He just couldn't remember which rule was number three.

"Is that the one where we don't fight or the one where we don't use destructive powers?" He asked, cocking his head to one side inquisitively.

"Don't fight is actually number one. I built the other rules off of that since I figured most of it could be covered by number one. I would like it if we could actually make it to Disney Castle with the gummi ship still intact." Kairi raised an eyebrow at them both but Sora could see her lips trying to twitch up into a smile and he grinned innocently.

"But Kairi, we have to practice. If we can't spar, how will we get better?" He made his eyes go wide and tried his best to look innocent and honest. Kairi put her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes at him.

"Sora, I have known you since you were five years old. That hasn't worked since you were ten. I know when you're faking. Now _you_ go drive the gummi ship. Riku, go take a shower," Kairi ordered, grinning as Riku narrowed his eyes.

"Are you telling me I stink?" Riku asked, looking offended.

"You smell like burnt hair." Kairi paused and added mischievously, "Might want to check that. I think Sora might have burned a few strands."

Riku's eyes widened comically and he rushed out the door, shouldering Sora aside on his way to the bathroom. Sora stared after him and tried not to laugh. "He needs a haircut anyway."

"I think he looks good with long hair," Kairi protested mildly, giving Sora a curious look.

He shrugged. "Sure, he looks hot with his hair like that but it's not really practical. Kinda wonder how he sees half the time with his bangs like that, too."

"Probably the same way he was able to see and even _fight_ with a blindfold on," Kairi giggled.

_'Badly,'_ Roxas put in dryly and Sora scowled at the implied insult to his friend. He could feel Roxas's amusement at his reaction and tried to ignore the Nobody. Something he rarely tried to do since Roxas rarely made himself known but sometimes it just had to be done. Though, he never could do it for long. He always had the feeling that if he ignored him for too long he would just disappear or something. Despite the fact that it possibly was something that was supposed to happen in some form or another, he didn't want to. Roxas was a separate personality than him and he didn't want him to disappear.

"Let's get going. I don't think we're that far away. Maybe just a couple more hours. It's just... there are a lot more Heartless gummis about than there used to be and I was getting tired last night, so..." He trailed off, not sure how exactly he could put it.

"Neither me or Riku are skilled enough at flying yet. I get it. I do know now how to get the most out of the engines when we need to run away, but we always seem to get a lot of damage when Riku drives." Kairi slid into one of the side chairs as Sora hopped over the side of the middle chair and settled into the uncomfortable pilot's chair.

"I think either of you could manage the ship enough to get us anywhere we've been at this point. It's just that I'm still the one who can do it with the least damage. You're getting really good though Kairi. Riku's good with the weapons, but he has this problem with running away and tends to want to make sure that none of the enemies survive if he can help it." Sora shrugged. He had to curb that instinct himself sometimes, so he understood Riku's need to make sure none of them got away, it just usually caused the ship a bit too much damage.

"I miss more than both of you," She murmured and he blinked, surprised at her frustrated tone.

"Kairi, when I first started flying – and believe me, Donald and Goofy were very leery of letting me try – I didn't do so well either. The only reason I'm any good at it is experience. You two both took to it better than me. In no time at all you and Riku will be in this seat most of the time." He grinned. "Then I can sleep most of the trip."

"The poor universe. Stuck with lazy heroes like you and Riku," she teased, smiling back.

"And you. You're a hero too Kairi – though I guess that makes it _three_ lazy heroes instead of two, doesn't it?" He laughed as she folded her arms at him and tried to glare. It was unbelievable since her eyes were shining happily and she was fighting down a grin.

_'For once, I have to agree with something Riku once said. You are a sap, Sora,'_ Roxas muttered, though his voice sounded suspiciously fond.

_'Yeah. But I'm _their_ sap. And that makes it okay,'_ he answered and he could feel Roxas' exasperation. He would have been rolling his eyes if he had a body, Sora was sure.

* * *

Kairi was talking with Queen Minnie – probably about that magic that Kairi had been using lately. Riku was talking with the King about the situation. Goofy and Donald were not in the castle as they had a mission elsewhere. So Sora was left to his own devices.

He was sure that seeing exactly how far he could get towards the tip of the castle was not what his friends would have called productive. But it was wroth it to climb to the top of the tallest spire and look across the Kingdom. It had taken hours to climb up, what with the roof not exactly being flat, and there were a few Keyblade marks around the castle from when he had used Ultima to keep him from slipping back down. He tried not to do that often, as he was sure the King wouldn't like his castle being riddled with marks from the Keyblade.

_'It looks nice. Peaceful,'_ Roxas murmured quietly. Sora tilted his head, trying to sort out what his Nobody was feeling.

Going with his instincts to guide him he asked, "Do you miss Twilight Town?"

_'The clock tower wasn't this tall. But we could see the whole town and beyond from the top of it.'_ It wasn't an answer, but Sora didn't expect a clear one from Roxas. Not about Twilight Town. Roxas still felt bitter about the whole experience – and yet he still saw Hayner and the others as his friends.

"We should check on Twilight Town anyway. Make sure that it's alright," Sora said out loud. He felt Roxas' surprise – and a jolt of fear. He followed the whirl of thoughts and felt a bit of worry himself. If they had known where Sora and his friends came from, couldn't they know that Roxas had come from Twilight Town? Would they care? Sora didn't know, but he decided that they could skip Radiant Garden and go straight for Twilight Town after they left.

He glanced once more at the landscape with the setting sun lighting it in orange and yellow before he braced his legs and jumped. It was a long way done, and he made sure to jump clear so that he was over the courtyard that came from the ship entrance. At least, he thought it was that courtyard. It was hard to tell from up there.

As he fell, black portals opened up beneath him. He almost sighed but instead called Ultima to his hands. Yet, still more were opening beneath him and he blinked, wondering what was with the large number of Heartless lately.

The Heartless surged toward him and he met them with a sweeping blow of Ultima. After that he was lost in automatic swings and twists. Claws would scrape at his back and dart away when he would twirl in mid air toward them. He let gravity pull him down in the moment when the blows of his blade weren't keeping him up – and didn't even notice how close he was to the ground until he hit it hard.

He ignored the pain in his back and head and leapt back up toward the Heartless, angry at how he had lost track of how long he had been falling. He had defeated over a thousand Heartless on his own, and he wasn't about to let a few fast fliers defeat him.

Munny dropped around him as shining hearts flew upward, but there were still a lot of them. It was hard to breath. He cleared the air around him with a few Thundagas, long enough that he could cast Curaga right after, removing many of the bruises and scratches that he had been given as well as healing some of his physical exhaustion. But the Heartless were darting back in soon enough and in frustration he delved for the power he called on sometimes. Roxas stirred worriedly as he did.

_'It's harder without Donald and Goofy to give you energy and easier to slip into that form. Do you really want to do this?'_ Roxas always thought ahead. But Sora was already reaching for one of the forms and Roxas hoped that he didn't accidentally trigger Anti Form.

They were both relieved when the burst of light that came when they transformed cleared and Sora was now in yellow and black, and not any different mentally than he had been a moment before. Sora sprang up, higher than he could normally thanks to Master's stronger Aerial Dodge and Ultima and Fatal Crest hacked into the Heartless quickly.

They died much faster then, and when Sora's magical energy was rejuvenated, Thundaga was even more powerful in Master Form. He was breathless by the time he had finished the last of the Heartless off, and he quickly let Master Form disappear.

By habit, he walked around the courtyard and picked up the munny and items they had left, his heart rate slowly dropping. He cocked his head as he pocketed a power gem, the sound of familiar hurried footsteps reaching his ears. He glanced up when they stopped, slowly straightening as he watched Riku look him over casually. Sora had to admit he was good at hiding when he was worried. Certainly the older boy didn't look worried now as he casually leaned against the green wall of the miniature castle behind him. If it weren't for the slight flush in his cheeks and the way Riku's breathing was a little _too_ even, he wouldn't even have realized that his boyfriend must have run here when he saw what was happening. His lips curved up into a cheerful smile. "Sorry Riku. You missed all the fun."

"That's because you're selfish Sora. You couldn't even leave a few for me?" Riku retorted, relaxing minutely. Sora pretended not to see it and turned as more footsteps came toward them. He grinned as King Mickey came into view. Unlike Riku, Sora really didn't think he had run. Hurried maybe, but Sora liked to think that King Mickey trusted in his abilities. He liked to think Riku did as well, but if he had seen Riku or Kairi in a similar situation, he would have sprinted to their sides, despite any abilities he knew them to have.

"Good that you found something to do while you were here Sora. Just one question?" Despite the amused smile, Sora had a sinking feeling that he was going to get in trouble – though maybe not from the King. He slid just a bit farther away from Riku as he nodded encouragingly.

"Just how high up were you? You were going by the window pretty fast." Frantically, Sora tried to think of exactly where the King and Riku would have been. But the King was looking at him in such a way that Sora was pointing before he knew it.

"There. The tallest point." He didn't need to look at Riku to know what the reaction to that would be and waited. When the reaction he expected didn't immediately come forth, he chose to glance over at Riku who looked a little annoyed, but otherwise unruffled. Good, he wasn't in one of his overprotective moods then.

"Welp, I'm going to find Minnie and Kairi and tell them what the situation is. You can tell Sora. We can all talk after dinner tonight." In another moment, the King was gone, back into his castle, and Riku was shifting away from the wall.

"I should be mad at you," Riku said, and Sora snorted and began to walk. Riku fell into step beside him.

"And if you hadn't been talking with the King, then we would have been_racing_ to the top," Sora pointed out, because he knew it was true. It was too good of a competition to pass up.

"I think the getting down would be hard if you were attacked up there," Riku pointed out dryly.

"Oh, they didn't attack until I jumped down," Sora said before thinking about it. Riku stopped a moment and glared at him.

"You could have just climbed down," Riku grumbled when Sora raised an eyebrow at him. The younger boy snorted and then grinned.

"And if you were up there and knew you could jump all the way down and not die you would have..." Sora trailed off but looked at Riku pointedly, who scowled, but reluctantly nodded.

"I would have jumped. I just think it's dangerous. Don't you ever worry that the abilities aren't going to last forever and will just stop one day?" Riku asked, folding his arms across his chest as they began walking again. Sora blinked rapidly before shrugged.

"Nope. Besides, in this case the Heartless kept me in the air... Well, for most of the time. I guess I cleared out too many at once because I hit the ground a bit hard." He rubbed the back of his head, still remembering how his head had ached after that landing. Curaga had cleared it up quickly, but he really should have paid more attention to where the ground was.

His teeth clicked together hard as the palm of Riku's hand slammed into the back of his head where his hand had been a moment before. He brought the hand back up and glared at Riku and asked angrily, "What was that for?"

"For being stupid. What's the point of having those abilities if you don't use them?" Riku glared right back at him and Sora's expression changed to an open mouthed incredulous one, complete with his head tilted and one eyebrow raised.

"So do you want me to use them more, or less? Ow!" Riku's hand hit him again and he contemplated just calling the Keyblade and starting a spar so his ears would stop ringing.

"Stop being stupid," Riku growled, and crossed his arms over his chest again, looking sullen.

"After following your example for so many years, why should I stop now?" Sora snapped back, and grinned as Riku whipped his head to the side to glare at him, his eyes glittering with anger. He waited a moment for Riku's fists to clench and for him to take a step forward before asking, tilting his head to one side, "Wanna spar?"

Immediately, Riku smirked and Way to the Dawn was suddenly in his hand. Sora called the Keyblade, removing the Ultima chain so that only the silver blade of Kingdom Key was left. His boyfriend scoffed and replied, "When do I not?"

"When you're sleeping, when you're being lazy, when we're kissing," Sora began to list them off, but was interrupted by a black Keyblade swinging toward his head. He ducked under the blade and attempted to hit Riku's unprotected side. With a twist that put him off balance, Riku avoided the hit – but not the next when Sora took advantage of him being off balance.

Eventually, Sora and Riku did get around to talking about the plans that were going to be made. But only after Sora had thoroughly defeated Riku.

* * *

For once, Sora was left alone on the gummi ship. Riku was saying a longer good-bye to King Mickey and Kairi was taking one last lesson from Minnie. Sora had promised them he would move everything back up to the gummi ship and prepare it for travel so they wouldn't have to worry about a thing. It was too bad that he did that so quickly, because it left him time to think. While he wasn't think in the same terms as he had been on Atlantica, there was still a seed of persistent guilt and a part of him that said he could have done_something_.

Usually this wouldn't have hit him quite as bad, but having another part of himself who was used to thinking about things and not just shrugging them off made it a bit more difficult – and Roxas being furious at whoever had done it had left him hollow and turning his anger inward.

_'A bit of a turn around for us,'_ Roxas commented softly. Sora agreed with him, and smiled slightly when Roxas added, _'I like it better when your anger is directed outward – at least then you're otherwise cheerful.'_

_'I didn't exactly like feeling like that either but... Never mind. If I think on it too much Riku will have to cheer me up again and I think that causes him some kind of obscure pain. He's used to being the one who angsts.'_ Sora leaned back in the pilot's seat. He ran his fingers over the side. _'So, Twilight Town next. And then... the Coliseum? We need to open more paths.'_

_'I think that's a good plan. I think I would like to see Twilight Town again – maybe I can see them again. As myself.'_ Roxas sounded slightly nervous over it. Sora grinned, shaking his head. Roxas knew him better than that.

"Did you think I wouldn't agree? Of course you can see them as yourself! Hayner, Pence, and Olette should get to know you. Though... they'll probably recognize you from the pictures so at least you won't have to explain how you know them so well. Or your dislike of Seifer."

_'Anyone who meets Seifer dislikes him. I think the only time Seifer has done anything other than make me angry is when you were near him and that's usually because you were kicking his ass.'_ Roxas sounded overly pleased by that and Sora had to chuckle. That had been fun at first – but it was unfair as it went on since he had the advantages his journey gave him and was constantly getting stronger. He had spent some time with the boy outside of Struggle tournaments, and he was a bit odd and rude, but not as bad as Roxas seemed to think he was.

"I'm sure he'll grow up better," Sora tried to rationalize. Unfortunately his thoughts were too close to the surface and Roxas's emotions heated up.

_'He's a bully. He'll grow up and probably still be a bully. He's an asshole and... You have too much hope for people. Seifer has nothing going for him except looks!'_ Roxas finished ranting and fumed silently in Sora's mind. Sora on the other hand, was trying not to laugh – he failed.

"H-his looks, Roxas?" Sora put a hand over his mouth as his laughter grew. Taking a breath and trying to smother all his urges to laugh he asked mischievously, "Have something for assholes, Roxas?"

_'Shut. Up. That wasn't what I meant. I'm allowed to find someone attractive without having feelings for them. And his personality is an obvious turn off.'_ Roxas paused for a moment. _'Axel wasn't an asshole. He was just... Axel.'_

"_Right._ And he didn't kidnap people either," Sora replied sarcastically. Immediately he felt bad for it and added quickly, "I mean, he was doing it for you. But, he was still... He wasn't the most... He did save our lives, he just..."

Sora trailed off, feeling as if he had done something very wrong and hunching up in the chair. Unexpectedly, Roxas laughed. _'He was manipulative and selfish for the most part. To most people he was an asshole. Even to me sometimes. But to how we were back then – I could take it, and dish it back, or ignore him. He hated being ignored. I think I was the only one who could play his games and turn them around on him.'_

Sora relaxed, hearing the fond tone in Roxas's voice and he smiled as he could see snatches of the memories. Roxas hadn't been the nicest person either back then, really, and he could see that – and see how the two had made biting comments at each other but still could smile. Mostly, he was just glad he hadn't offended Roxas and had instead somehow managed to make his other self feel happier.

* * *

The armband on his wrist felt warm and comfortable. No matter what Kairi had said nervously, Sora was sure her present to Riku and he was in fact genuine. He had told her that too – she had smiled to hear it, and Riku had looked skeptical still. But he was confident that it was a good gift – and an extra connection to Riku was never bad.

In using the excuse that Roxas wanted to see the town by himself, he had managed to slip away from them both. Roxas had agreed to give him some time before they switched. His Nobody was as curious to see if the project would work as Sora was – though Roxas was less confident that it would.

Sora played with the armband on his wrist and looked up at the gates to the mansion. Roxas asked silently, _'Why here?'_

"He spent a lot of time in this mansion," Sora answered, and took a small object from his pockets. It was a mishmash of metal and an attached chain. Sora's fingers still ached from trying to control his magic enough to weld some of the metal together. It looked very rough right now, and he wasn't sure the final step would work. He didn't know how half of the keychains had been made, and many of the people who had given them to him didn't either – though anyone he had asked had agreed that it probably had something to do with their hearts.

His blue eyes roamed over the plants climbing the mansion wall and he walked over to them slowly, his eyes darting up and down the stems and branches. There were many thorns, but that didn't bother them. He wanted a thorn – he wasn't sure why, it just felt right. But none of them seemed the right length. He curbed his impatience and moved on, brushing leaves aside to peer at the larger stems. Small thorns pricked his hand, but he ignored them for the most part.

He was almost ready to give up when he saw a thorn the right size. Larger than all the other thorns, it had to be nearly an inch long. Carefully, he reached for the thorn, long scrapes forming on his arms. He ignored those as well as he tried to bend the thorn off the stem. It was having none of it and he drew back, frustrated.

_'I can do it,'_ Roxas said confidently. Sora only hesitated a moment before giving up control, curious to see how Roxas would manage it. He pocketed the future keychain and closed his eyes, letting his mind drift back.

Roxas opened his eyes and glanced down at his attire. He looked just like he had before. He wouldn't say it was his normal clothes – some of the time he still thought of his Organization robes as the normal and his white and gray outfit as the abnormal.

Shaking his head free of nostalgia, he rolled his eyes as Sora's eager curiosity infected his mind. "Calm down. This will only take a second."

Reaching up, Roxas removed his necklace. The four points weren't sharp, exactly, but they had enough of an edge that he could probably saw through the base of a small little thorn. He reached into the bush, held onto the branch with one hand, and began his work with the other. The thorn was stubborn and soon Roxas's forehead was creased and his mouth was forming a scowl. He was slowly getting through, but it was frustrating that a tiny little torn – or even not so tiny thorn – could take so long to get off the bush. He muttered, "Fits Riku's personality."

_'Hey!'_ Sora protested, more out of habit than anything else. Riku _could_ take being stubborn a little too far.

"Shush. I almost have it." Roxas didn't pay attention to Sora's mental huff and annoyance as he put his necklace back on and then used one hand to pull the thorn free. Some of the skin of the bush came with it, but he ignored it in favor of smirking triumphantly down at the thorn. "Told you I could do it."

_'Yeah, yeah. Just put it in your pocket with the rest of the keychain and go introduce yourself to Hayner or something.'_ Roxas smirked at the put out tone. Apparently his Other hadn't believed him. Putting the thorn with the rest of the future keychain, Roxas turned and observed the mansion with eyes darkened in memories.

"I am glad I met you and that we're one, but sometimes..." Roxas let the words trail off, but Sora caught the thought.

_'I know. What DiZ – Ansem the Wise – did hurt you. I'm not exactly comfortable with his methods. I kinda wonder if Riku was right – would you have found me eventually? Did you want to meet me?' _Sora couldn't guess if Roxas still would have joined with him – the need to be complete again against wanting to be his own person was something Sora knew wouldn't have been an easy choice.

"We all wanted to be whole. I didn't know about you, but I wanted to know why I had the Keyblades – a question Riku had asked the first time we fought." It was an evasive answer, but Sora didn't push it. He lay silent in Roxas's mind – well, mostly. He was humming slightly, but Roxas didn't call him on it.

* * *

Finding Hayner and his friends had been easy. So had explaining some of what had happened. The awkward silence had been harder to get through. Fortunately, Seifer had interrupted it and the mutual hatred over the blond and Roxas proceeding to kick his ass when challenged to a fight had quickly forged – or perhaps reforged – a bond with the other three teenagers. The end of the day found the four of them sitting on top of the clock tower.

It was a bit after this, just as the other three were going home, that the boys experienced the disorientation of being forced to change back.

Roxas felt the first hint when there was a sharp pain in his head and he stumbled in surprise. The rest of it could have been said to be normal for a change – not more pain after that than normal, except that instead of a change that could take minutes, it was almost instantaneous and Sora wasn't ready to be in control. It sent them both into a spin, and for a moment, the world went black. Considering that Naminé and Kairi had been asleep while they changed, it was obvious they probably hadn't experienced that part.

Sora was also sure they hadn't awakened to find disappearing darkness dripping from their skin and faded, hazy memories of fighting some Heartless and Nobodies that had appeared – no, that he had gone_looking_ for. For a few beats of his heart, Sora felt horrified – and afraid. He had never been unconscious before when he changed and Anti Form had always been caused by drawing on too much power before.

_'And wasn't it this time. Isn't our change much like a form?'_ Roxas asked quietly. Sora pushed his own fear aside and down, angry at his reaction. He had transformed, but he was definitely overreacting. Roxas was right, they did use power keeping Roxas as dominant, it was just such a slow drain neither realized it – and when Sora was back in power, overusing it must have caused backlash. At least, he hoped that was what it was.

_'You know, I hate to say it, but both Riku and Kairi are better at figuring these things out than either of us.'_ For Roxas to suggest that, he must have been worried. Sora frowned and bit at his lip.

"I don't know, Roxas. I mean, I know they would understand, but I don't want to worry them. They have enough problems." He took a breath and stood up, his eyes flicking to the sky. It was dark out, and Kairi and Riku would be wondering where he was. He hoped that it hadn't been too long – the sky still had some light to it, and he was hoping that Anti had only taken over for enough time for evening to fall and not long enough that it was nearly morning. He really would have to explain to Riku and Kairi if it was nearly morning.

_'I suppose,'_ Roxas responded dubiously.

Sora smiled and said as he wandered out of the forest and back toward where they were staying, "We'll just have to remember not to switch for so long next time. But it was worth it, right? You had fun."

He felt the warm glow of happiness from Roxas and grinned as the other answered, _'Yes. I had fun. Thank you.'_

"No problem," Sora chirped, and went into quick run, trying to hurry home. Just as he reached the front door of the hotel they were staying in, Riku stepped out and the two crashed together.

"There you are," Riku muttered from underneath him. "I was about to go find Hayner and get you. Kairi wants to go out for dinner and... Sora, why do you smell like darkness?"

Sora blinked in surprise at the sudden change and rolled off of his boy friend, keeping his eyes away from Riku's as he took his time getting to his feet. "Well, I ran into some Heartless on the way here. I guess that could explain it."

He turned and smiled at Riku. The other teenager was staring at him, his gaze unreadable. After a moment of silence where Sora silently hoped he wouldn't have to explain Anti Form, Riku smirked. "Right. Figures you would. They can probably follow you and your heart better than Kairi's and mine. So, Kairi found this nice little place to eat down near the middle of town."

"Oh, that diner? Yeah, the food there is pretty good," Sora responded, and inwardly sighed in relief – and guilt. He hadn't lied – but it wasn't the truth either. He just didn't want to worry them. Especially since he knew that Riku would try to blame Anti-form's existence on himself. Neither of his friends needed more worries, and Anti Form wasn't bad exactly – it was just all instincts and violence.

In a few minutes the three of them were walking toward the diner and Sora forced thoughts of Anti-form from his mind. Instead he put his hand in one of his pockets and felt for the thorn and pieces of metal there. It wasn't ready yet – but it was almost there, and he would rather have bright thoughts in his mind while it was being created.

They all had enough darkness to worry about without bringing his personal darkness into it. It was needed, and it would only cause problems. Despite his constant reassurance to himself on the matter, there was the uneasy thought that wasn't from Roxas that told him he should tell them now, before they found out on their own.

He ignored it, and enjoyed his dinner.

* * *

End Chapter Eight. 

Plot is going slowish, or at least the action part, but it's necessary. You'll have to wait on what Riku really thinks about this incident until his chapter – but I can say right now that Sora isn't a very good liar and Sora should know how observant his boyfriend is. Next chapter is Kairi, and more on her and Naminé's feeling about this whole thing. They'll be in Coliseum for at least next chapter, possibly for some of Riku's as well – in other words, chapters will no longer just have just one-world in it – they could be split like this one, or the worlds may end up stretching for more than one chapter. There will _eventually _be a couple of original worlds – and yes, more Nobodies. Leave a review with what you liked, didn't like, the usual!


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything Disney or Final Fantasy related.

* * *

Chapter Nine

The Coliseum was fascinating, even if Kairi hated to see fighting for simple _sport_. The Underworld on the other hand, made her shiver in fear. It was where they had first been – Sora had quickly herded them up the bright stairs and into an area that led to the giant Coliseum and Sora's friends. Ignoring the cheers she could hear, she curiously squinted at the listings of previous tournaments. She recognized some of the names – and there, at the beginning of every list was Sora's. He had won them all.

"Quite a kid, your friend," A voice said from behind her. She whirled around, her eyes wide in surprise as she stared at the dark haired woman who had come up to her.

"Hey, calm down girl. I'm not going to hurt you. I'm Megara. Call me Meg. I'm a friend of Hercules and your little pipsqueak there." Megara had an earthy, knowing look to her – as if anything Kairi said just wouldn't surprise her. Kairi searched for the word a moment before finding it. Megara looked a bit... jaded.

"I'm Kairi," She said softly, smiling slightly at the description of Sora. "He's still young. He'll grow – though his father and mother weren't much taller; both were shorter than Riku is now."

"Poor kid. Shorty forever. Well, at least he managed to get a little taller than you. Boys seem to have this problem with being shorter than their girls. Don't know why. But men are _all_ about size, half the time. You know what I mean?" Megara was grinning wickedly. Kairi was sure the older woman thought it quite probable she _didn't_ know what was meant. Which was true.

_'Well, in Sora's case, there is the size of his shoes to consider,' _Naminé piped in, giggling as Kairi realized just what Megara was talking about – and now Naminé. She was shocked that her Nobody would even have heard about that.

_'I was living with a bunch of men and Larxene for many months. While for the most part they were quite focused on business, if Larxene, Axel, and Marluxia were put into the same room the conversation was bound to get interesting. Usually not that crude, but once in awhile... Well.' _Naminé was a bit embarrassed to be revealing this to her Other, but Kairi just giggled and felt sorry for the other girl. From the flashes of Larxene she could see, the Nobody hadn't been the best female companion that could have been asked for.

"I'm sure Riku and Sora have probably figured out their own size issues long ago," Kairi said sweetly to Megara, resisting the urge to grin at the slight flash of surprise in the woman's eyes and the stretching of her lips into an interested smirk.

Megara shifted to run her hand up one of the lists. "You're not as innocent as I thought. Especially not for a Princess."

"I wasn't raised as a Princess. I grew up with those two and _someone_ has to keep them in line." Kairi grinned and followed Megara's gaze to where Hercules' name sat just below Sora's. She had to smile. He just seemed to beat whoever he came up against.

"And it helps you're in love with the hero, huh?" She was suddenly caught under a piercing gaze and Kairi struggled to throw off the question, but Megara didn't seem like she was being cruel – just sympathetic.

"I... Yes. He's my friend. I still do have feelings for him, and I don't know if they'll ever really go away but... He's in love with... Someone else." She avoided Megara's eyes – and avoided looking toward her boys. She could hear Sora's cheerful voice and Riku's lower murmur mixing with Hercules' amused tones.

Megara sighed and put a hand on her shoulder. "In love with the other one, huh? Don't worry about it, I don't care," Megara said in response to Kairi's startled look. "Surprised you're not jealous."

"How can I be? Riku makes him happy – and he makes Riku happy, something that I don't think anyone else could do. And I'm content as I am, being friends with them both."

"No darkness in your heart. Sora explained that once. I didn't think it was possible, but there really isn't, is there?" Megara seemed to be asking the question mostly to herself. Kairi didn't answer, instead looking away. She had never realized that could be part of it – that maybe she could feel jealousy for fleeting moments, which she had, but that her heart just didn't allow too many of the darker emotions to lurk for long. It was against her basic nature.

"Is it so bad, to be happy because they're happy?" She asked, feeling suddenly, and oddly, defensive.

"Nah. Just makes you a bit better than the rest of us," Meg replied and smiled down at her with clouded eyes. "Come on, let me show you some sights of the city. The men folk will be talking shop for awhile."

* * *

They had been in the city, and mostly around the Coliseum, for a few days, and Kairi could tell Riku was beginning to get restless. They were looking for a special object that would open another path out of this world and to a brand new one – but what special object that would be, Kairi didn't know. She had been spending most of her time touring the city with Megara.

"Sora usually found the ways to open new paths within a week – and by accident! Sometimes it wouldn't even take a day! He said so." Riku was beginning to pace. Kairi sighed and stared at the portal to the Underworld. Sora had gone back down there today instead of hanging out with Hercules. He hadn't yet returned and she was beginning to become anxious. For that matter, she was sure Riku was as well. It didn't help that she was half-expecting someone or something to attack them at anytime. Besides the normal Heartless and Nobodies, there had been no sign of anything hostile. Not since the Nobody Riku had destroyed.

That was why she was expecting the worst. She knew Riku was as well. It was for that reason he was snapping more often than normal – he wanted them safe and when both she and Sora were wandering in different directions he could only choose one of them. Actually, she was quite sure Riku had trailed her more often than he had Sora. She was the one who needed more help when battles popped up, anyways. Though she was getting better with those daggers – she just wished she could call that Keyblade by herself. It belonged to her – at least, she thought it did. It felt right when she held it, but so far only Riku had been able to call it and give it to her, and she hadn't questioned him on it.

"We'll find it eventually. Sora was usually helping people at the same time as he managed to stumble on whatever opened new paths. He has luck with that." Kairi smiled affectionately as she thought of their spiky-haired friend and his tendency to help whoever he came across. It was possible it would get him in trouble some day – or maybe it really already had. But she and Riku were there to make sure that nothing really personally bad happened to him.

"We could help people," Riku muttered, but he sounded unsure.

"If we stumbled onto something like Sora used to I'm sure we would. But until then we just have to search for a different way to find a path," Kairi responded reasonably.

"Right," Riku grumbled. Kairi hid her smile and glanced once again toward the portal – and then to the Coliseum. Just standing around waiting for Sora wouldn't help anyone.

"I'm going to go into the Coliseum. Hercules is fighting a monster or two today, and Meg is in there. Come find me when Sora gets back, okay?" She watched his expression change and she added, "I'll come right back out once Hercules is done fighting. I'll be perfectly safe."

Riku raised an eyebrow. "Perfectly safe when there is a monster in the arena?"

Despite that very valid point she shot him an exasperated glance and began walking toward the Coliseum. "I'll be fine, Riku. It will be focused on Hercules. I just want to watch. I promise I won't go any farther than that without coming to tell you first."

"Fine. But once Sora is back we should all look for the way to open the path. Together." His voice was tight with an emotion she couldn't name and she stopped to glance back at his tense frame and bit her lip. She had been spending a lot of time with Megara, and with Riku making sure she was safe, Sora and him hadn't been spending much time together either. To be truthful, she was beginning to miss their presence.

"Of course. Once Sora gets back we'll look together. I can't let you boys have all the fun." She didn't really think it would be fun to search the Underworld – which was where they probably would be looking – but it would be fun to spend time with them.

The Coliseum was packed, just like it always was when there was a match with Hercules going on. Naminé briefly stirred to look out and then Kairi felt her drift and fade. Naminé was not very interested in watching people fight monsters for sport. Neither was Kairi, really, she wanted to spend time with Meg and watch Hercules. All of the other matches she ignored.

She found Meg easily enough. The woman was sitting mostly by herself – there was a young man close by, but there was a polite distance between him and her – and everyone else had put a more than polite distance between themselves and Meg. Kairi shook her head and sighed. It was a negative effect of being Hercules's love. They were nervous being near her. Monsters might attack her, Hercules might get the wrong impression – it was sad, really. Kairi ascended up the stands of the coliseum, unafraid of being near the personable young woman with her sarcastic sense of humor and her jaded personality.

She ended up sitting between Megara and the young man – she didn't want to offend him by sitting away from him. He gave her a polite and welcoming smile before turning his attention back to the still empty arena. She turned and smiled at her friend. "Riku's pacing outside, waiting for Sora to come back."

"Surprised he didn't follow you here," Meg snorted, shaking her head. Kairi shrugged, knowing Meg had seen instantly how protective Riku was of both his friends.

"I convinced him that I was near enough that he could get to me in time if anything dangerous happened – and that Hercules was protection enough from almost anything. He'll still probably come running in here once Sora comes back to make sure I'm safe." Kairi couldn't keep a bit of annoyance out of her voice. She knew his concern was well founded. She just wished it wasn't. She wished she could defend herself like they could. But they had two years of battle practice on her, plus all of the games and sparring they had done before that.

"Well, he'll get better as you get better." Kairi stared at Meg in surprise. The woman grinned. "Think I didn't notice you carrying those daggers about and practicing whenever you could get the time? You're not good, and you need to find someone to train you eventually, but it's good to have a weapon on you."

"We'll be moving fast. I won't have much time to find someone to help me. Besides, I... if there's time, it's easier to fight with the Keyblade." She flicked her eyes away from Meg's face and toward the arena after registering the look of surprise and seeing Meg giving her that familiar contemplating look that mean she had once again realized she had underestimated Kairi. "Look, the fight is starting."

Meg allowed for the distraction, and for a few minutes there was nothing but cheers from around them as they both watched Hercules fight the monster. Suddenly, a voice from her other side spoke up, his tone slightly sad. "Poor monster. Taken from where it belongs on behalf of a god who won't do his own work."

Kairi glanced in surprise at the young man to her side. "It's a monster. It probably killed people where it came from anyway. Hercules is doing what is best."

"Possibly. And I agree with the hero's actions. But think of how confused the monsters must be. It won't ever end. Hercules will always be fighting, and the monsters will always be dying until there are no more left – and then Hades will probably create more." The man sounded almost depressed. She couldn't help but wonder how involved he was in the monster's plight – or if he saw something else in them.

"I know someone like Hercules," She said softly. "But his monsters seek him out."

"Ah. I'm surprised you would want to watch more fighting if that is the case," The young man said, turning his head toward her. She met gray eyes and smiled, wondering why something about this calm, understanding man made her feel uneasy.

"Hercules is a friend of ours. I don't like watching most fights, but this is different," She responded. She kept most of her attention on the arena but made sure to glance back at him as he responded.

"The other fights... the ones just for sport? Despicable," He scoffed, and she was surprised that he did look truly angry. Curiosity won over her wariness and she turned a bit in her seat to offer him her hand.

"I'm Kairi." She smiled and watched as he returned it almost shyly, tucking a loose strand of his long black hair back before reaching out to clasp her own hand. There were calluses on his palm that reminded her of her boys – this man was a fighter as well. That explained his opinions.

"Nayet," He said. She dropped his hand and relaxed. It would be good to talk to someone who wasn't part of their journey or knew all about Sora or Riku for a few minutes.

* * *

Later as she stared down the stairs to the Underworld, she wished that conversation with Nayet would have lasted a bit longer and that she was not about to descend into a place where only the dead and immortal were supposed to tread. But she had only been talking with him for half an hour when Sora and Riku came back, and now they were looking down into the Underworld. Sora had explained that if the object was anywhere, it was more likely to be down in the Underworld, as it was last time, but... She didn't want to go down.

"Don't worry Kairi. There's nothing we can't beat when all three of us are here!" Sora told her, grinning over his shoulder. She quickly smiled in return and he looked ahead, staring to go down. Riku put a hand on her shoulder and she glanced at him.

"The faster we get down, the faster we get out of this place all together," Riku whispered, and she gave him a much more sincere smile before taking a breath and stepping down the first step. She knew they would want to put her between them, in case she fell. Though, as she watched Sora race headlong down the stairs – which had no railing or any way to keep him from falling off – she was glad that Riku was the one behind her.

"He's going to break his neck," Riku muttered from behind her. She stifled a giggle in the palm of her hand. It would have sounded slightly hysterical. She didn't know why the Underworld scared her so much – she had been to the World That Never Was. But the place was so – clichéd as it was – lifeless.

She continued down, her eyes on Sora and replied, "That would be an ironic end to it all, but if he wanted to, he could just... do that."

She stared in dismay as he began to glide and then glared at the long staircase. "Remember when you said you were going to chain him to the ground?"

"Yes. Want to help?" He asked, and she could hear the amusement in his tone.

"Yes," She answered and focused on keeping her footing the rest of the way down the stairs. Her legs ached and her knees trembled slightly as they finally came down off the last step. She laid her eyes on Sora just as he opened his mouth and she saw him hesitate. She could practically see him reconsidering his words as he smiled ruefully.

"Sorry guys. I guess it's a bit harder without glide," He said, and she sighed and looked pleadingly at Riku who was giving their friend and exasperated look.

"Sora, what if we had been attacked on the stairs?" Riku asked and Kairi could hear him listing the questions in his mind that would lead Sora to realize why going ahead of them so far had been a bad idea.

"Oh, they never do," The brunet replied cheerfully. Kairi blinked. That was an odd way to put it. Besides, just because they hadn't before... things had obviously changed.

"They could have, Sora," Riku replied sharply and she was as stunned as Sora to realize that there was real anger in his voice. Upon realizing they were both staring at him Riku shifted his gaze to stare off into the river. "Never mind."

"Um, I'm sorry?" Sora offered hesitantly, looking at her helplessly when Riku didn't change his stance. She gestured encouragingly, glancing worriedly between them. "I guess I wasn't thinking."

She bit her lip – and then her gaze hardened when she saw Riku's expression. It hadn't softened an ounce and she could bet he was about to snap at Sora. She glared and was satisfied to see his eyes flicker over to her and hesitate. She doubted it was because she was scary – but this wasn't a place for an argument, especially one so trivial. She didn't know why Riku had suddenly snapped like that, but they couldn't risk that now.

"Just... watch it next time," Riku muttered and Kairi glanced at Sora to see him looking relieved. She wasn't, not really, but then, Sora was just glad to be out of the argument. She could see the way Riku's eyes lingered on Sora - eyes shadowed - whenever the boy wasn't looking. She had to wonder how long that had been going on, because now that she thought of it, Riku had been acting a bit oddly around Sora. Not enough to more than note offhand before, but now that he had reacted in such a strange manner, she could see it.

_'Sora doesn't seem to expect it, or see it. They know each other well, but... When Sora is focused on one thing, like finding new paths, he doesn't tend to be very observant of other things,'_ Naminé commented, sounding just as worried as Kairi felt.

"What's that?" Riku asked, bringing her out of her thoughts. She glanced across the river to where his gaze rested and frowned. There was a giant stadium there. It was a bit of a strange thing to see down here, and it reminded her of the Coliseum but much more insidious.

"That, my traitorous friend, is the Underdome," A voice answered from beside them as a cloud of smoke appeared and drifted away to reveal a man - a man who was blue. Kairi raised an eyebrow in mute curiosity.

"Hades," Both boys growled, both of their voices filled with loathing. She glanced at them and shuddered slightly. Riku could easily look dangerous and that wasn't surprising – but the anger in Sora's eyes, the actual _rage_ was surprising, and she hated to see it, for, every time it sent chills down her back. It reminded her that Sora wasn't her playful island boy anymore, and was a warrior. She had known this, intellectually – but it was difficult seeing the actual proof.

"How nice, you remembered my name. I mean, for you, it's been what, two years since you've seen me. And here you are, all grown up, with muscles and everything." Hades was circling around, his mocking voice clearly directed at Riku.

"Leave him alone." Sora's voice was low and the Keyblade had appeared in his hands. Whereas Riku had not yet called Way to the Dawn and was simply eyeing the man – god, if she remembered correctly – suspiciously, Sora was crouched and fully ready to attack.

Hades backed up a couple of steps, but seemed more amused than anything else. "Slow down, short stuff. I'm not doing anything. Violence isn't always the right answer. A god's allowed to be a little curious at the _intruders_ in his home, right?"

"We'll be out of here as soon as we find a way to open a new path," Riku responded warily. He shifted his position to keep Hades in his eyesight as the god glided around him.

"Really, what'd you lose this time, kid? Your brains; common sense?" Hades paused a beat, this time direction his question at Sora. "Wait, you never had any of those."

"Oh yeah? Even if I don't, I'm not the one who keeps getting his butt kicked in every battle, am I?" Sora responded cockily. Kairi glanced at him in surprise. She hadn't expected Sora to be so headstrong when facing a powerful opponent.

"Heh. But you had Hercules's help. That's cheating," Hades said smugly.

"And_you_ had Auron's free will held hostage. _That's_ cheating," Sora retorted.

"Can we go?" Riku asked suddenly, sounding bored. She knew it was faked, and she bet Sora did too – but whether Hades did was another story.

Hades narrowed his eyes – and then backed off, smiling crookedly. "Sure, sure, go right ahead. _I_ won't stop you."

With that vague statement – that had her tensing along with the boys – the god disappeared. She glanced at Sora, who was still glaring at the spot in which Hades had been, his grip on the Keyblade turning his knuckles white. Her gaze turned to Riku, who was staring moodily at the same spot.

"Right," She breathed and then spoke up, in a brighter tone, "We should get going."

In a low tone that she was sure Riku at least heard, she added as they began to walk, "I want to get out of here as quickly as possible."

* * *

_'I wish if he was going to keep staring at Sora he would just say something about what is bothering him. Even Sora is beginning to notice,'_ Naminé said as the three rested in a small cavern. They had been searching for hours, been in a few battles – which Kairi had managed better than she had before, but still not nearly up to the level that she wanted to be at – and were now eating at the only food they actually carried on them. Sandwiches weren't very filling, but the energy they gave was what they needed.

_'I know. It'll come out eventually,'_ Kairi comforted. Except that they both knew it would come out at the most inopportune time when neither boy was ready to discuss whatever was on Riku's mind – or probably argue about it, really.

"If it turns out to be the Olympus stone again I'm going to beat Hades unconscious." Sora paused and then sighed. "Or try. Stupid power sucking Underworld."

"What?" Kairi asked at the same time Riku spoke up. Sora's confused blue eyes glanced back and forth between them.

"I didn't tell you? The Underworld weakens parts of us. I can't transform, for one, and I just feel generally weaker." He was looking at them both in such confusion, unaware apparently of Riku grinding his teeth or Kairi's own sudden need to sink her head into her hands.

"You couldn't have told us this earlier?" Riku ground out slowly.

"I thought I did. I'm sorry guys." Under his truly apologetic look, Kairi sighed and smiled tightly, relieved that Riku didn't do anymore than mutter under his breath after that. Any of them could forget to do things sometimes and with the stress they were under and Hades interruption, Kairi could easily forgive her friend.

"We forgive you," Kairi answered for them both. She paused a moment, just incase, but there wasn't even a hint of dissent from Riku and she continued wearily, "Any clues where to go next?"

Sora looked thoughtful and her fingers twitched when he ran a hand through his hair. It was already messy enough, it wasn't like he was messing it up more, but she just wanted to stop him from doing it. His expression changed from thoughtful to frustrated and he sighed. "We could check out Hades' room, or the stadium."

She bit her lip at his tone and glanced at Riku for help – but he was staring at the floor with that same brooding expression he had been wearing lately, which she was beginning to associate with problems involving Sora. It was subtly different than his usual sulking and brooding – mostly because Riku's eyes flickered to the other boy once in awhile and the brooding led to him getting angry most of the time instead of depressed.

Before any of them could say a thing, the sound of distant, high-pitched laughter rang through the air. All three of their heads snapped up. Riku was the one to ask suspiciously, "Are there children down here?"

"There shouldn't be. And if there are, they probably aren't normal ones," Sora muttered in return.

Kairi took a deep breath and stood up. She gripped her daggers firmly in her hands. "Let's find out."

The three marched forward quickly and Kairi's heart pounded. Another fight was probably ahead of them. She was exhausted, but it was mostly mental at this point. Curaga helped – up to a point. It couldn't restore energy, just heal them. But she was determined that she would keep up with her boys. She wouldn't be left behind ever again, and even if she exhausted herself, she would still be by their sides.

The sound came again, fainter, as they reached a fork and the boys began to take the left path. She hesitated a moment, because this time the sound was more like children crying – and barred gates slammed down behind Riku and Sora.

The boys immediately whirled around and attacked them and she cried out – immediately stopping when she realized that would only give them away. The gate had no apparent lock – and oddly, wasn't moving under the boys' pounding. Sora especially was surprising in his ferocity and even when Riku took a step back to consider the problem as he caught his breath the boy was slamming Ultima into the gate. Worriedly, she stepped up. "Sora."

"Kairi, I can't..." He stopped and looked up helplessly, pleadingly, and she reached through the bars to put a hand on his wrist.

"I know. Look... I'll just follow this path. It has to come out somewhere, right? If we're lucky, we'll meet up again or this will disappear once we're out of sight and we'll backtrack and be able to meet up again." She tried to smile and was surprised to feel a hand on her shoulder. She glanced up at Riku.

Aqua eyes were studying her carefully. "Don't get hurt." His eyes slid to the boy by his side and he smirked. "I wouldn't be able to deal with a depressed Sora again."

Her lips curved into a grin, recognizing his typical cover-ups for his very real concern. "I'll be careful – I'll run if too many Heartless show up. Promise."

Sora looked as if he were about to protest. She gently squeezed the wrist she held. Her eyes caught his and she withdrew her hand from between the bars and stepped back, out of Riku's reach. "Look, if it's a major enemy, they would probably be more worried about you two than me. You two are the ones that will probably be in trouble."

"Kairi..." Sora whispered, and Riku used the hand that had been on her shoulder and moved it to his, squeezing lightly. It was the first gesture Riku had made toward Sora in the past few hours that wasn't tinged with anger or hurt.

Riku pulled Sora away and smiled a bit bitterly. "The faster we get moving the sooner we can find a way back to her."

"Right," She heard Sora mutter as Riku pulled him away.

She gave them one last brave smile and promised, "I'll be fine."

* * *

She didn't know how long it had been when she stumbled from the long hallway and into a cavern. She had just used her last potion after fighting her way through a pack of Heartless. She didn't remember what Sora had called them. She could only think that they looked like dogs. There had been other kinds before, but those were the last, piling on her, yipping and growling as they tore at her flesh and attempted to get at the one heart they couldn't have.

Her daggers cut through them and their darkness spilled onto the floor before they disappeared, a mockery of living blood. After a moment, there was not even that to prove that she had defeated them. She had been shaky and bleeding, and it had taken her last potion before she could get back to her feet. She wanted her boys back – she was better, but she wasn't strong enough. She needed more practice.

The cavern had seemed empty, but between one blink and the next there was a man sitting on a ledge. Her back stiffened as she recognized him, and the black portal closing behind him. The man – the _Nobody_ sighed. Familiar gray eyes studied her from underneath black hair. Earlier that day she would have said they seemed sad. Now she knew that was but a mockery and there was nothing in those eyes but observation.

"I do wish that you had been one of your boys – it would be much better to have taken one out – or captured one, depending on which had taken to the trap. But you will have to do, Kairi, as bait at least. I do apologize for any inconvenience this causes you." Nayet – or whatever his name was – pushed himself off of the ledge and fell lightly to the ground.

"Don't bother apologizing. You can't mean it," She said fiercely, her knuckles turning white from the grip on her daggers. She could be lucky. He could perhaps not be as powerful as the Nobodies that retained their forms were supposed to be. Maybe she would be lucky, and be able to defeat him.

"Can't I?" He murmured, thoughtfully. "I wonder about that sometimes. You seemed to be an open-minded woman, Kairi. Don't you ever think upon Nobodies? We don't feel real emotions perhaps, but not even echoes? Or knowing what we should feel? There has to be something. Otherwise, why search for a heart in the first place? Why make the deal _I_ have made if I don't at least feel the semblance of an emotion? _Can't_ I mean it, Kairi?"

She stared at him, and trembled slightly at the desperate look in his eyes. When had the Heartless taken him? He looked no more than a couple of years older than her. He had still been young. And what were these Nobodies after? Hearts. Probably the same way Organization XIII had been. It was their fault her world was gone. Her heart hardened and her eyes narrowed. "No. You can't."

She rushed him first. He looked, for a moment shocked. But she ignored it, because he was a liar, and he didn't feel. Naminé was eerily silent in her mind. She raised her daggers for a strike – and had them blocked.

It was a chain, glinting on the dim light of the Underworld. She hadn't expected a chain, she had expected something firmer. She jumped back as he twisted one end in his hand to lash out at her. "What's your real name?"

"My real name is Nayet – the name I had in life." He had the chain wrapped around one wrist now and used that hand to lash it toward her again. "The others call me Yaxent. I dislike the change."

She blocked the chain with one dagger, expecting the chain to rebound off – but the chain wasn't one piece like other weapons, it was a string of links, and instead they wrapped around her dagger, embracing it, cradling it, and then taking it from her as Yaxent jerked it back.

Then there was only one dagger and she reminded herself not to make that mistake again. The next time her dagger clashed with the chain she pulled it away after only a tap and left the chain lying empty as she ducked under and onto her knees to come up and land a strike at him. It was then the noises started.

He hissed in pain – and it seemed to come from everywhere. Footsteps echoed from behind her and she half turned to see, only to have to block a chain from where Yaxent still stood. There was nothing behind her. Her blue eyes looked up at him, realization filling her mind.

_'The one Riku fought created darkness to affect the sight, he creates noises to affect the hearing – it affects them as well, but he knows which noises are real,'_ Naminé murmured, and Kairi felt a sense of relief to know her Nobody was with her.

_'Always,'_ Naminé promised as Kairi jerked away from the chain – only for it to be too late. It wrapped around her and pulled her forward. She jerked back, and cried out in pain as the chain slid off of her – dragging its links deep into her skin. When Yaxent pulled the chain back into his hands, there was a ring of blood forming around her wrist.

"You could give up," He suggested softly. She glared at him, and lunged forward.

This time she tried her magic as well. She was pleasantly surprised that he hadn't expected this. There was her first, Light Flare – and a new one she had begun to practice at Disney Castle. She hadn't yet named it, but when she felt her magical energy dwindling after multiple Light Flare spells - and Yaxent was beginning to block her magic more often than not - she began to focus energy for the new spell. Light formed around Yaxent, circling him, and she saw him stop to stare – and then focus on something behind her.

"Kairi!" It was two voices and she paused, relief filling her at the familiar sounds. She turned on instinct, searching the cavern – but the voices had come from a direction where there was no entrance.

She caught a glimpse of Yaxent's light colored clothes and his black hair from behind her before something collided with the back of her head and she sank into mocking darkness.

* * *

End Chapter Nine

I am sorry that had to happen to Kairi. But, I do promise that she is getting stronger –it's just a slow process. She will get a good jump forward later – but anyway, poor Kairi. Too bad she didn't get to use that spell. This will definitely make her more determined on their journey.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, or anything Disney.

Notes: Um, lots of battle ahead. If anyone has suggestions on how to make future battle scenes better, feel free to give me crit, I'm very iffy about the battles.

* * *

Chapter 10 –

Ahead of him, Sora pivoted on one heel to take care of the last Lance Soldier just as his own Way to the Dawn sliced through two Rabid Dogs. No more appeared to replace them and he could hear Sora stomping on. Riku took a moment to collect some dropped munny, letting Sora pull ahead of him. Wasting energy wouldn't help Kairi, and if Sora was going to tire himself out before they even got back to Kairi, Riku would let him. He was more worried about what trap they had fallen into – there was no way that gate separating them from Kairi was an accident.

Part of him wanted to blame Hades for it, but this wasn't the god's style. But he probably did know who had done this. Riku squeezed the hilt of Way to the Dawn, his eyes narrowing and glaring at thin air. They should have known better to dismiss so lightly what Hades said. _He_ should have known better. Sora had battled him, but he had heard his plans as the god talked with Maleficent and he knew that the god never said anything meaningless.

And last on his mind was a worry that was always on his mind. Sora had_lied_ to him. He had tried to dismiss it, tried to focus on their journey more, but he found himself taking a sharp breath when he stood close to Sora, to see if the smell was back. That scent had come from his boyfriend. A strong scent of darkness had been coming from his _skin_, even from underneath, _inside_ him. From what he could gather, even as strong as it had been at that moment, the scent had already been fading too.

There were few reasons that Riku could think of _why_ Sora would smell of darkness – and even less reason that he would lie about it. The silver-haired boy had spent most of the few days since then just attempting to think of those reasons and he hadn't come up with anything that made sense. That was when he started changing from being worried to annoyed. He shouldn't have had to be thinking up reasons – Sora should have just told him the truth.

They never had secrets from each other before. At least, not for long. Except of course, that Sora had conveniently forgot to tell him that he wasn't a virgin for the longest time. Despite knowing the two items weren't related it was another secret Sora had kept from him – even if Sora didn't seem to think it was a big deal. He probably wouldn't think whatever he was keeping from him now was a big deal.

Though, maybe he did. Sora hadn't actively kept the fact he had lost his virginity from him, it had just never come up. Riku _knew_ Sora was lying to him this time. There was no way that smell came from Heartless. It would have taken Sora practically being a Heartless himself to cause that distinct of a smell.

There was a yelp from ahead of him and Riku snapped his eyes up from where he had begun glaring at the ground and sprinted forward – only to twist to the side as his spiky-haired friend was thrown toward him. As Sora rolled to his feet Riku turned his attention to the front – and stared, baffled. There were a few dusks, but the other Nobodies – those he wasn't so sure of. They were slow moving, except for their short, flat arms. Actually, their arms were a bit more round than he would have expected.

The slow moving Nobodies – there were four of them – all at once spread their arms wide apart. He saw Sora suddenly dart into a roll and it occurred to him a second too late as Sora shouted a warning that he should do the same. The Nobodies brought their round arms together – and a second later Riku could hear a crash around him, and almost _feel_ the sound waves. He on the other hand was thrown backwards – by one of the four Nobodies who were not so slow moving at all.

The round arms tore into his shoulders and then the Nobody used its leverage to pull itself up into a spin, sending him crashing into a wall as it fell to the ground and went back to its slowly moving pace.

"I think they travel with their attack!" He heard Sora shout as he attempted to blink away the black dots in front of his eyes. That was a _wonderful_ talent for their enemy to have. Really, being attacked at the speed of sound was _fun_.

He stood up and analyzed the situation as Sora jumped into the thick of it, Ultima making short work of the dusks. Yet even as Sora had begun attacking the dusks one of the sound Nobodies turned and began to crash its arms together. "Sora! Look out!"

Sora turned, but instead of heeding his warning like the – stupid, foolish, idiotic, going-to-get-himself-killed – _reckless_ boy he was, he attacked it. Except at the last second Ultima was turned sideways. Riku never could figure out how Sora suddenly just knew the right way to counterattack, but it was correct this time. The second the Nobody's round arms met the hilt and blade of the Nobody, it's attack discharged – backwards. Instead of the attack carrying the Nobody forward, it sent it crashing backwards. By the shaky way it climbed to its feet, it was obviously damaged.

With that example to follow, Riku charged into the fight as Sora went to finish off that one. All three left were attempting their attacks. Thinking of how the Nobody had reacted with the Keyblade, Riku slid in and shouldered one into the other as their arms clashed together. As he watched, they both went toward each other, but with such a short distance, it was more like they were trying to go _through_each other. After a few seconds of the Nobodies hanging in the air, their sharp round arms going through each other, both of them faded away into darkness.

So pleased by this development, Riku hadn't even watched where the last one's attack went but he was distracted from his triumph at the sound of a sharp crack.

He whirled around, Way to the Dawn held high and ready to attack – but there was no need. Sora was rebounding off the wall he had been thrown into and in midair Ultima lifted to point straight up and lightning crashed down around the Nobody.

When the air cleared all that was left was an angry Sora and tattered bits of a Nobody that quickly disappeared. His eyes flicked over Sora, concerned to see him holding one arm at an odd angle. He stopped himself from saying anything, knowing Curaga would clear it up.

Instead of casting his the spell, Sora spun around and started stomping forward again. Riku gaped for a full moment before his eyes flashed in anger and he quickly shortened the distance between them. "Sora!"

"What?" The brunet snapped. Riku tried to put a hand on his shoulder. Sora shrugged it off. "We have to keep moving."

Annoyed, Riku conjured a potion and thrust it at the boy. Despite the fact he had some of his own. He knew Sora wouldn't bother to stop and fiddle with his pockets and take one out. "Drink it. You can walk and drink at the same time."

For a moment, he thought Sora would refuse. But then Sora's shoulders slumped and he grinned a bit. "I'm being stupid aren't I?"

Riku smirked and watched his friend roll his eyes before drinking the Potion. That had gone better than he had thought. Sora was still setting a fast pace – but his arm was healed and his back wasn't as stiff. Riku in turn relaxed slightly. He didn't mind a fast pace – he was worried for Kairi – he just didn't want a pace where they were wasting energy.

"When aren't you?" Riku asked innocently and ducked the fist headed in his direction with a chuckle. He opened his mouth to say something more when he noticed Sora stop and stand stock still as one of the bright balls of lights – Riku had been wondering if they were souls that had lifted from the river – brushed by him. His eyes dilated and he went entirely pale. There was a far away look in his eyes that either meant he was thinking hard – or talking to Roxas.

He assumed it was the latter when Sora shook his head and muttered out loud, "Later," and walked forward again. Riku stood still a moment longer and watch suspiciously as the ball of light did something very out of the ordinary – and tried to float after the boy. Sora's fast pace left it behind in moments.

Riku followed his boyfriend, matching his pace and settling into his thoughts. Sora gave him a curious look but didn't ask yet. He probably didn't want to bring it up either. Sora had been too secretive for Riku's liking lately. There was this, the darkness, and the incidents where he could see Sora toying with a small glinting object. He pursed his lips as they jogged on, and didn't speak, just yet – he left his anger simmer. There was no time for this right now.

"There's a fork here," Sora said quietly, sensing his introspective mood. Riku flicked his eyes from one path to the other and tilted his head to the right.

"We'll have better luck that way – this path has curved to the right slightly and we'll probably come closer to Kairi if we go right and hope it makes a circle." Both of them started down the path and Riku was pleased to see that this one too curved to the right as well – and a lot more sharply than the other one had.

Both had sped up their pace slightly, and Riku thrust down the worry he had that Kairi would be in trouble. There was no point in thinking about it yet – with luck she would be perfectly healthy. That wasn't actually realistic, so better yet, she would at least be only bruised and tired.

There wasn't any warning to what happened. Sora just suddenly flung himself to the side and Ultima smashed into one of the balls of light floating nearby. Riku took a step back, startled at the strange behavior, but Sora was suddenly scampering down the hallway, eyes straight ahead and obviously not wanting to answer the questions in Riku's eyes.

His temper snapped. "Sora! What the hell was that?"

He sprinted to catch up and resisted the urge to pin the boy against the wall. For one, he simply _couldn't_ without expecting Sora to retaliate and they didn't have time for a fight. It didn't help that intimidation didn't quite work on Sora. Not that it ever really had, but it used to at least make the boy hesitate to anger his friends. Lately that didn't seem to be a problem. Riku had been almost constantly pissed off at him for the last week.

"What was what?" Sora asked, his blue eyes avoiding focusing on anything except the space ahead of them. Riku stared at him incredulously as they ran.

"You can't be serious. I'm not an _idiot_, Sora." His eyes narrowed and he couldn't resist adding, "I'm not _you_ either."

Sora tensed and Riku was glad a pack of Heartless chose that moment to appear. As they jumped into the fray, Sora snapped, "It's none of your business, Riku!"

"It damn well is!" Riku replied furiously, Way to the Dawn striking down the metal Heartless in front of him, feeling triumphant when his blade took it down when Sora's call of Thundaga hadn't.

"Look, it's nothing to worry about!" Sora's voice floated over to him as hearts flew up into the ceiling. Riku barely noticed that the Heartless were still coming, and almost didn't notice when their claws dug into his skin. He was just intent on destroying them and ridding himself of the anger he felt.

He did notice, briefly, as Way to the Dawn flashed up that the bracelet he had thought was just a trinket had changed colors. Yellow, red, and orange flashed through his vision as he watched it, fascinated, while almost instinctively he killed the nearest Heartless. What had Kairi said? It was supposed to connect him and Sora.

He took a gamble. Sora believed in it, and while normally he could tell Riku's emotions pretty well if he was looking - he hadn't been recently, too focused on finding the path – Riku knew without be able to focus on him, and only hearing his voice, Sora would believe him. He forced his voice to the coldest he could manage on his boyfriend and hoped the bracelet was reacting to Sora – or that Sora at least would think so. "Then why does this bracelet say you're lying?"

Riku honestly had no idea what the colors meant – for all he knew it could just have been reflecting the light strangely. But where there had been the sounds of battle and Sora muttering and yelling at the Heartless, there was sudden silence. The next thing he knew Thundaga was called, three of them directly after each other, destroying all but the magic resistant Heartless, which Sora quickly destroyed. Riku blinked as he did, because for just one moment he could have sworn there were two Keyblades in Sora's hand – and the boy was in his normal clothes.

But when Sora turned to him, there was only Ultima. Riku's eyes flicked to the bracelet on Sora's wrist and saw that it was a murky red with the tiniest flickers of yellow and gray. Red was easy then – anger. He glanced back at the bracelet on his wrist. The red was almost gone, leaving yellow and orange and strange flickers of green. He held it up silently. Sora's flinch was all he needed to know before he hissed, "Stop _lying_ to me."

He hadn't expected for Sora to look at him with eyes that were darker than they should have been a pained whisper that sounded almost afraid, "I don't want to worry you."

"Well you _are_, Sora," He snapped back. Sora stared at him – and then turned and continued on his way.

He thought the brunet wasn't going to answer and his heart nearly stopped in confusion, hurt, and anger that made his ears roar with sound of his blood pounding in his ears. Then Sora quietly threw over his shoulder, "It felt familiar."

Riku frowned, anger draining away to be replaced by curiosity that brightened his eyes and had him once again matching Sora's pace. Before questioning the boy he paused, trying to connect the phrase to something he had questioned him on. "The light? You've been here before, Sora."

"Not to me. It felt familiar to _Roxas_." Sora met his eyes and Riku sidled closer. They were walking now – still fast paced, but it was easier to study the brunet while they were going slower.

He opened his mouth, his eyes narrowing in concern and suspicion – and then they turned around a sharp curve, and before them was a cavern – and an unconscious Kairi was at the other end, lying on a ledge. Instantly - before Sora could bolt toward her - Riku grabbed his friend and planted his feet firmly, resisting Sora's initial lunge. "Stop it! We won't help her any if we run into a trap!"

Sora tensed under his grip and pierced him with a fierce glare – but he stayed. For once, he listened when Riku said stop and though he shifted his weight uneasily and held the Keyblade ready, he didn't move. The taller boy sighed in relief and stared at Kairi – and then around the cavern. He couldn't see the closest parts, but he would bet that there was either an enemy waiting on another ledge, or that Nobodies would ambush them the second they stepped inside.

"Sora, I'm going to ask you not to fight when we get in there unless it becomes blocked off with one of those barriers. I want you to get Kairi and _run_ and don't come back until she's safe. I can handle myself, but we can't fight if we're worrying about accidentally hitting her, and we can't leave her alone while she's unconscious." He tightened his grip on Sora's shoulder when the boy opened his mouth to protest. "I'll come after you once I take care of whatever did this to her."

"But... Riku..." Sora was cut by Riku spinning him around to face him and kissing him quickly. It was a much more effective way of shutting him up and Sora used it on him as a distraction all the time – turnabout was only fair.

"Trust me. I may not have the same magic as you or those forms, but I _can_ handle myself." He had destroyed that Nobody before, and he had the darkness he could still wield in his dark aura balls.

Sora nodded reluctantly and released Ultima. Riku exchanged a glance and they both crept forward, to the edge of the entrance. He half expected an enemy to jump out then, because they must have been heard – but none did. He caught Sora's eyes and they both nodded. Both bolted toward Kairi, Sora's quick run bringing him to the other side while Riku wasn't even in the middle yet.

There was a sound to his left and he turned to meet the threat – only to find his ears were deceiving him as a shape attacked from behind. He tried to turn and meet the attack but the mistake had already been made and he only managed to deflect it away from his face, a hard metal slapping instead at his shoulder, cutting through fabric and into skin. He slammed Way to the Dawn into the metal – a chain, he realized a moment too late – and had the weapon yanked from his grasp when the chain wielder suddenly pulled back roughly.

He noticed behind him Sora jumping down from the ledge, Kairi in his arms and flicked his attention back to the present, following the chain to its owner. Black hair hung around his enemies face – and he was surprised at the youth he could see there. The Nobody couldn't be much older than him.

"Riku, wielder of Way to the Dawn, the Master of Twilight – or is Dawn? They're nearly the same thing, aren't they?" The man mused as he stared at the Keyblade in his chain. Narrowing his eyes, Riku held up his hand and the chain lay empty as the blade returned to him. He didn't care what titles he was being given now – he was still the same person who had destroyed the last Nobody and he would do the same to this one.

The Nobody didn't look surprised, instead continuing with his own introduction. "I am called Yaxent, and I am afraid that I must kill you."

"Funny how many have tried. I really doubt you're going to succeeded." Riku's voice had lowered alarmingly as he spoke, his aqua eyes intent on the male in front of him. Way to the Dawn was poised high as he bent his knees slightly, ready to lunge at the Nobody.

Yaxent shrugged and the chain lashed out at him again. As Riku was dodging it, he heard the sound of the chain coming back from behind. He didn't know how the Nobody could have done it but he rolled under where he perceived it would be – and found nothing but air just as the chain wrapped around him from the other side and slammed him into a wall. The air left his body suddenly – but he managed to wrap his free arm around the chain and _pull_. Yaxent cried out as he was brought toward Riku and the boy was reminded of the Nobodies who followed after their sound attacks. He shouldn't have been surprised to see Yaxent grab hold of the chain closer to Riku as he was pulled near and use the grip Riku had on it to flip over, knocking Riku over as he was kicked in the chest.

The chain came away from his grip – but he threw a dozen balls of darkness after the Nobody, who dodged to one side – and used the end of that strangely long chain to flick a few back at Riku. The Keyblade Wielder rolled underneath, coming up shockingly close to Yaxent – by the sounds everywhere he had thought the man was moving farther away.

Reacting quickly, before the Nobody could coil the chain for another hit, Riku lunged forward and struck the Nobody, trying to keep the advantage. Yaxent cried out and Riku pressed on, unleashing a string of slashes and strikes until at the end he struck hard, sending the Nobody flying backward. Panting, Riku took a moment to take out the only item he had on him – an Elixir. He gulped it down, feeling his energy coming back and his wounds healing. Almost immediately afterward he let out a storm of dark aura balls.

He thought he had missed when there was the sound of rustling cloth above and behind him. But his ears had tricked him too many times for him to totally trust them and he only turned halfway, Way to the Dawn up defensively – but once again, there was nothing there, and Riku dropped beneath the chain he knew to be coming – except that it had been aiming for his legs.

"That actually hurt," Yaxent stated mildly as the chain wrapped around Riku's ankle and threw him into a wall. "I was before contemplating the idea of feeling sympathy for having to kill defenseless children – but neither you nor Kairi are defenseless."

"You don't feel," Riku gasped, and aimed another storm of dark auras at the Nobody, who was forced to pull the chain back to defend himself – but not before twisting it as he pulled. Riku hissed in pain as he clearly felt his ankle snap before the chain slid off.

He forced himself to sneer as he noticed that as quick as Yaxent had been, the time he had taken to injure Riku had allowed the dark energy to hit him and he only managed to deflect the last few. He lifted aqua eyes to meet gray ones and spat, "You can't feel sympathy – but I guarantee right now you're feeling pain."

"No wonder she would rather talk to me than be outside with you," The Nobody said, confusing Riku as the male put on a slightly malicious smile and the chain sped at him. "We had quite a nice chat in the Coliseum."

"Liar!" Riku yelled as he slashed at the chain and lunged forward, ignoring the pain from his ankle. Quickly, Yaxent pulled part of the chain back to hold it taught in front of him. His eyes seemed oddly focused for a moment and they slipped to stare behind Riku.

"It's not a lie," he heard Kairi say and in surprise Riku jumped back and turned – but there was nothing there. Nothing except a chain sliding around his middle and _tightening_, enough that he was sure his ribs were breaking.

"Sound," He managed to gasp and glared, raising a hand to throw dark auras from – only to have his wrist grabbed from behind.

"That's right. Sound," Yaxent murmured and the chain tightened further. Riku turned Way to the Dawn around and stabbed backward – and felt triumphant at the resistance it met – until he heard the metal clinking against the blade. "I do believe you're in a bit of a bind."

"Fuck you," Riku snarled, and ignored how tight the chain was becoming and the fact he could barely breath in favor of lunging backward, knocking into the Nobody. The chain loosened slightly and Riku slammed his elbow back in the general area of the Nobody's stomach. That produced much more satisfying results as he heard Yaxent choke and there was a sudden weight on his back. The chain fell away and Riku turned, ignoring the spots in front of his eyes in favor of unleashing both Way to the Dawn and a storm of dark auras onto the Nobody. His magical energy was low, there wasn't enough to conjure a potion, so instead he focused on destroying the Nobody before he was killed.

This time when the Nobody was flying backward, Riku followed. Yaxent fell against the wall and took much more time getting up this time. Riku savored the fear he though was in his eyes – until he realized it was faked as the now-familiar chain wrapped around his legs and he saw Yaxent tighten his grip on it and pull sideways. Riku had no idea how he controlled the chain as he did – but there he was, once again being slammed into a wall. This time, when he fell, it took longer to get up. His broken ankle wouldn't hold his weight and both his legs had been cut into heavily. His ribs shrieked in pain and for a moment all he could see was black – and then he forced his arms to push him up and he jumped backward and caught the edge of a ledge before the chain could come for him again.

"Silly of you to fight it. It won't be long now," Yaxent's voice whispered in his ear – and he flung Way to the Dawn to the side before he thought about it. A chain wrapped around the Keyblade and let it go. Cursing he focused on Yaxent's real position as he used the last of his magic to send more dark aura balls toward him and then called the Keyblade back to him.

As he lifted the blade, a chain wrapped around his neck. He forced his legs to move, trying to push back – only for the chain to stay where it was and his legs to slip from beneath him as the chain held him in place. Cursing while he still had breath he slashed at it with the Keyblade, desperately hoping for just a bit of his magic to come back faster, enough for an attack – or even better he wished for Sora's magic.

There was a flash of blue from the side, a sense of cold in the air as he felt his vision going dark – and then the chain was being ripped from his neck harshly. He gasped, choking and managing to roll over and get a better look – and saw only pink now. "Open up, Riku."

This was the real Kairi. Smell, touch, and he could see her worried eyes as she forced an elixir down his throat. His ankle healed itself, his ribs were unbroken and the blood from numerous wounds stopped staining his clothes. "Kairi. Sora was..."

"Sora used Curaga and woke me up. When I told him about Yaxent's powers and urged him to come back – well, it didn't take very long. Um, don't yell to him or anything, okay? I told him to ignore all noises." Kairi was peering at him worriedly as he stood and he smirked at her.

"Thanks. See you in a few minutes." He jumped down, darting back into the fight. He shared a brief, confident smile with Sora – and then they were fighting, and he felt a wave of excitement as they matched each other. When one stumbled from Yaxent's attacks, the other was there. The Nobody didn't seem to quite know a strategy for both of them – probably why he had wanted to separate them in the first place.

When the chain was throwing Sora into a wall – which wasn't a good idea as Sora was adept at using magic while flying through the air and Thundaga seemed to hurt a _lot_ – Riku was jumping forward for a few lightning fast strikes with his Keyblade, jumping back when the chain turned toward him. Sora leapt back into the fight, and his heavier hits with Ultima had Yaxent stumbling onto his knees. Sora was faster on his feet, but swung the Keyblade slower and heavier – Riku was nearly the opposite. They worked perfectly together – when they wanted to.

Riku ignored the sounds that sometimes came from behind him, even when the chain had managed to send him far enough out of the battle that he lost sight of Yaxent. Sora must have been doing the same, though somehow Sora seemed to just rebound off the walls, catching himself in midair and flipping back into the fight. Riku desperately needed to learn how to do that.

Once both of them were in the battle, it was short work – especially with a few well-placed Light Flares from Kairi. He felt guilty for not giving her Keyblade to her, but he didn't want her in this fight – she hadn't fought next to them long enough that she could slip her own style into theirs. Her style wasn't developed enough that they knew hers either. The magic from the background was better.

"It won't matter, in the end," Yaxent gasped as he slid to the ground after Sora had sent him flying into the edge of a ledge protruding from the wall. "You don't know what our leader wants. You can't stop us if you don't know what we're doing."

"Maybe we can't stop your leader," Sora said grimly, Ultima slamming into the Nobody's middle.

"But we can stop you," Riku snarled, and Way to the Dawn stabbed into and through the Nobody's chest. There was a clap of electric sound, high pitched enough that it nearly drove Riku down to his knees – and Yaxent faded away.

Riku stared at the spot where the Nobody had been in frank surprise. It had seemed so easy once Sora was there. The noises hadn't been distracting when he knew that his friend was keeping an eye on the Nobody when he could not. But a part of him wondered what the Nobody meant – if they killed all the ones they came across, of course they could stop them.

"Hey, what's that?" Sora stepped to where Yaxent had been and crouched down, picking up something – a thread. "I wonder where this came from – oh."

He saw Sora's eyes go out of focus as the thread began to glow. In a confident move, Sora jumped back a pace and swung Ultima up and toward the now floating thread. A bright light was emitted – and there was a distant click in Riku's mind and a hint of clouds in his vision. Then Sora put Ultima away and grinned at him. "Guess what?"

He cocked his head, raising an eyebrow in inquiry. That had just been odd. Kairi was coming up to them now as well and looking at Sora curiously. She was the one who voiced the question. "What was that?"

"We can leave now," Sora chirped, picking up the string and putting it in his pocket as he began to walk out.

"What? What do you mean? We still have to open the path." Riku demanded, quickly catching up to his boyfriend, who grinned at him. It hit him a second too late and he blinked, and then his eyes flicked to Sora's pocket. "Is that what that sound was?"

"What sound?" Kairi asked, and Riku looked over in surprise – just as Sora stared at him.

"That's the first time anyone has been able to hear it," Sora murmured, and his grin softened into a warm smile. Riku tilted his head and shared a confused glance with Kairi – who hadn't had her question answered – before shrugging and letting Way to the Dawn fade away. At least they could get off this world now.

* * *

Riku stared out of the screen. They had hidden the gummi ship in a cloud in space, off the main path. The new world couldn't be much farther – but they were all tired. Despite Sora have healed them all after the battle once more, Riku could feel phantom echoes of some of the injuries - and Curaga and potions could never totally get rid of exhaustion. Sora seemed to still be fine, running on his own inner energy, but he and Kairi had demanded a stop. Kairi he was especially worried about.

The door to the cockpit opened. He didn't have to look to see Sora. Almost off hand he glanced at the bracelet, the gem swirling with blue, green, and hints of gray. He frowned at it – the gray seemed to be ever present. Then his eyes flicked up to Sora who was leaning on one panel to stare out. "I used to sit here sometimes when Donald and Goofy needed rest and nudge the gummi ship. Just, ya know, a little. There's a certain amount of time that I could get it going at a low speed before the engines really started making enough noise to wake them up."

"Were you in that much of a rush?" It didn't seem like a Sora thing to do. He must have been exhausted himself, considering that those friends of his weren't exactly lazy either.

Sora shrugged and gave a slightly brittle smile. "Yeah. I lost the two of you. Twice."

Riku was forced to look away at that, feeling the guilt well up – and then a hand was pressed against one of his. "You're not going to start brooding over that, are you?"

His eyes met Sora's blue ones and he had to smirk at the worry shining in the brunet's eyes. "Nah. Not my style."

Sora's jaw dropped and for a moment his eyes widened. Then they narrowed into a glare. "Not your style? You brood at _everything_."

"Oh yeah? Prove it," Riku challenged, waving a hand to the side and tilting his head as he grinned down at his boyfriend. Sora's mouth opened and closed soundlessly – and then he pounced, one arm wrapping around Riku's neck for a headlock. The taller boy laughed and kicked out at Sora's legs before the smaller boy could mess up his hair by giving him a noogie.

That brought them both crashing to the floor. There were a few moments of struggle and then Sora reluctantly gave in. Riku grinned, his hands pinning Sora's wrists to the floor. "Look what I've got."

Sora glared back, his lips twitching suspiciously. "What do you have?"

"What do I have?" Riku pretended to look thoughtful before his eyes raked Sora's body. It had the desired effect of making Sora blush as his eyes crawled back up to stare at his eyes – and then his lips. "Something that I think needs to be a little less _tense_."

Sora nodded slowly, but Riku didn't like the grin he was failing to hide. "You know, you don't truly have something unless you can _hang on to it_."

Before Riku had time to process the sentence, Sora was twisting out of his grip, his legs shoving at Riku's. The taller boy fell to the side and scrambled to his feet just as Sora did the same. Sora crouched low and Riku bent his knees, both of them in their classic battle positions, though they kept the Keyblade out of it. Sora shifted forward – and then stopped as something fell out of his pocket and to the floor with a metallic jingle.

Riku narrowed his eyes as the boy's demeanor changed and he scrambled for the tiny object, flushing bright red. The anger he had though gone flared up and his hands curled into fists. He recognized that as what Sora had been working on since Agrabah – the thing he kept secret and sometimes came away from with bleeding hands. "What's that?"

His low voice should have warned Sora not to lie. But Sora's eyes darted away from his own. "It's just something I've been working on. Forget about it, okay?"

"Sora!" He snapped. "Damn it, why do you keep _lying_ to me. I can tell you know. You lied in the cave, you're lying now, you lied about why you smelled of fucking darkness and why don't you just _stop_! Just tell me what that damn thing is!"

Sora took a startled step back – and then returned his anger in kind, his hand fisting around the metal. He didn't even seem to notice when he began to bleed. "You want to know what it is? Fine! It's a present, Riku! _Your_ present!"

The shorter boy lifted his hand and threw, his palm opening. Riku blinked as the piece of metal hit his chest and he barely managed to keep the metal that had been dyed blood red from falling to the floor. He stared at it, the stem shaped metal with two little leaves and an overly large thorn somehow all synthesized into a silver and green combination with a black chain. A black chain that would fit perfectly on Way to the Dawn. He forgot all about the other lie, and about darkness, and looked up with regret in his eyes – only to find the door sliding shut.

Riku stared at the keychain in his hand and sat back in one of the chairs heavily. It wasn't even his birthday. His eyes closed at the thought – and then opened swiftly. It _was_ almost Sora's birthday. He could find a way to make it up to him. Riku smirked. He would make a present that topped anything Sora could even imagine.

* * *

End Chapter

And Sora still managed to actually avoid the topic. Anyway, new Disney world next chapter, Sora's birthday – if I can fit it in, etc. Feedback please!


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything Disney.

* * *

Chapter 11 –

He had half wondered if Riku would somehow try to avoid him. Considering that all three of their beds were squashed together, in retrospect it was a stupid idea. Instead when Riku came to bed, for once he had pulled Sora closer instead of squirming to Sora's bed. Kairi mumbled in protest when Sora flailed and brushed her back as she slept. He froze and glared at the boy holding him. Aqua eyes were closed to amused slits and Sora huffed as he was brought closer. Considering how badly their earlier confrontation had gone, Sora was wondering just what Riku thought he was doing – but he wasn't going to protest.

Sora wasn't as mad as he had wanted Riku to briefly think. He just didn't want to worry him. Roxas snorted and murmured, _'I know it's not just about worrying them now. You know Riku will just be hurt you didn't tell him. The longer you wait the more he will worry. He's Riku – he won't have a bad reaction. Just explain it to him.'_

_'I... Roxas, how can I? How can I explain what's going on when I don't even know. Even if I tell him, he'll have questions – ones I can't answer. It would be better if both him and Kairi think nothing is wrong. We just won't use up that much energy again. It won't happen.'_He rested his head on Riku's head when a hand slid into his hair. If his boyfriend was going to act affectionate when he needed comfort – even if Riku didn't know that – then he would forget about what had just happened. They didn't need words between them right now, not when Sora knew there still had to be as many thoughts going through Riku's head as his own. Though he hoped they were on a different subject.

_'It happens when you use your forms for too long and too often as well,'_ Roxas pointed out softly. _'Except for Final Form.'_

_'Final Form takes too much energy – I need to draw on others for that. Not just so I don't tire myself out like with the other three – I more need energy for Final. And your cooperation. Even then it's tiring.'_

_'But it keeps Anti away for longer, doesn't it? I noticed, after the fight in The World That Never Was. And I looked through your memories. Final Form helps – because you're right. You _do_ need me for Final Form – because Final Form shoves your own darkness farther away, and you need your whole self to do that.'_ Sora ground his teeth at Roxas's words and fisted one hand in Riku's clothing. Another hand came on top of his, smoothing out his fists and another hand tugged gently at his hair, in a clear sign to lean back and look up at him.

He did slowly, trying to look calmer than he really was – but Riku wasn't buying it. His friend's eyes were narrowed. He briefly looked away, sighing slightly as he loosened his hand from the plain white shirt Sora had worn to bed. Absently he smoothed the material and reminded himself they needed to get Riku's regular clothes fixed from where Yaxent's chain had dug into his shoulder. He reached up to touch the spot where the wound would have been if it hadn't been healed away. It was chilling sometimes to think they could do that – they could make the physical wounds disappear, and make it so they showed nothing for their efforts. Few things scarred after a Potion or magic had been applied to them.

_'There's a scar over your heart,'_ Roxas murmured. Sora smiled faintly in the darkness. Of course there was – that was when Roxas had been made, when he had fallen into darkness. That was when he had given up himself for his friend to be whole.

There was another, rougher tug at his hair and he glanced up, removing his hand from Riku's shoulder. There was clear worry and annoyance this time. He stretched out and kissed Riku's lips lightly. "Go to sleep. You can ask in the morning."

That seemed to satisfy him and Sora curled up slightly again, putting his head back against Riku's chest. He pushed the guilt away, and felt the slight anger radiating from Roxas. He had said Riku could ask – it didn't mean he would answer.

* * *

The new world was not what Sora expected. He wasn't sure what he should have expected – but the nearest place on the world the gummi ship could transport them to was on a beach. Sora looked from the beach in front of him and then turned his head toward the trees and plants he could see – and the city beyond.

"Um, guys... does that ocean just stop?" Kairi asked and Sora turned back to look at the ocean and squinted.

"It must just be an optical illusion," Riku scoffed. Sora stared at the water. It definitely smelled like salt water – but Kairi was right. It did seem to just... stop. But he wasn't going to contradict Riku right then. They were all in a good mood and Riku hadn't yet asked him any questions he wanted to avoid – it all worked out.

Instead of touching on the disappearing ocean debate he glanced back at the city. "Why don't we go there?"

"Do you think it will have answers?" Kairi asked curiously. Sora had to shrug helplessly. This was just how they had always done it.

"We might find some clues. Even if we don't, we'll probably find a way to open a new path eventually." He made a move toward the jungle-like plants, eyes glancing ahead. There were bound to be Heartless before long. There always were. His eyes swept over the rocks as he picked a path toward the city. There were weird runes on some of them and he slowed to look at them carefully.

And both of his friends passed him, hurrying toward the city. He cocked his head at them. "Rushing won't help any."

Riku frowned over his shoulder at him. Sora looked back calmly as he wandered after them. The silver-haired boy's eyes narrowed. "The faster we get to the city the faster we can get out of here and the closer we are to getting the Islands back."

"And the easier it will be to walk into a trap," Sora pointed out. Both of them stopped and stared at him, Kairi's face worried and Riku with a scowl. He sighed. "Just walk normally, okay? Besides, we're strangers. People are going to see us eventually and we'll probably have a better reception if we aren't running."

He continued walking, ignoring the frowns of his friends briefly. Kairi had never traveled a world he hadn't been to, and Riku seemed to always either been unconcerned about his reception or hiding. They had to trust him on this – he had walked into traps before because none of them were watching where they were going. Neverland had been a big one – even if it had been one organized by Riku.

His two friends settled into walking beside him, one on either side and he had a sudden sense of deja vu. How many times had he, Goofy, and Donald walked liked this? His heart ached briefly, missing his friends – but if it came down to who he would rather have by his side, it had to be Riku and Kairi. Then at least he would always know if they were safe or not.

"What's above the city?" Kairi asked after they had been walking a minute. Sora blinked and followed her gaze upward. It was too far to tell, but the best Sora could guess is that there were rocks surrounding some great light. He eyed it warily.

"It might be dangerous," Riku said, also eyeing it.

_'I don't think so. It doesn't feel wrong. It feels like... Light.'_ Roxas murmured and Sora nodded his agreement. He looked at it and he didn't feel wrong – but more like the hearts of parents were shining over the city, protecting it.

He cleared his throat. "I don't think it's dark. Maybe dangerous if we were going to do something to the city. But it just feels..."

"Warm," Kairi finished for him and he glanced at her in surprise. She smiled, her face flushing slightly and he grinned back, relaxing. It wasn't just him then. He wondered why – if it was their Nobodies that were sensitive, or they themselves.

"If you says so," Riku muttered dubiously. "But anything that big and glowing is bound to cause problems. I would wager half my munny that if there's any trouble on this world, it's centered around_that_."

"Probably. Big shiny things usually cause problems eventually," Sora agreed. He wasn't going to argue with Riku about that – everyone wanted power of some kind, and that was definitely powerful.

As if to fill the lull in that had fallen in the conversation, Heartless began to appear. There was an almost instant shift, Sora and Riku stepping forward as Kairi stayed put, her hands glowing. Sora glanced at Riku as there were two flashes of light from him and was surprised to see that golden, flowery Keyblade once again in his hand before it was handed off to Kairi. It always sent Roxas into puzzled thoughts – he was just glad that Kairi had something better than those daggers. The Keyblade was stronger, and could be called back.

He was forced to pay attention to his own attack when a Morning Star Heartless began to spin. He blocked the spins and counterattacked, wishing and wanting to have two Keyblades so as not to give it opportunity to hit back. And, for just a brief moment, Oblivion flashed in his left hand as he used just his right for a backswing. It had happened in the Underworld, and he hadn't been sure – but this time it stayed for a few swings and Sora whooped in joy as the Morning Star was destroyed and he shifted toward a new enemy. The next second it was gone, and he could feel Roxas's puzzlement alongside his.

He didn't have time to consider why two Keyblades would appear and stay for Roxas but only now began to appear for him without using the magic of his clothes. There were Heartless to kill.

More than half of the Heartless were gone and none of them had been injured badly when Sora caught Kairi suddenly holding the Keyblade sideways in front of her, and the blade glowed white. There had been a new spell – that had to be it. He ducked under the swing of a Neoshadow and watched in fascination as a circle of white appeared around three of the smaller Heartless. They were engulfed in light – and then gone when it faded away. He turned to congratulate her – and a Keyblade swung into his vision, destroying a Heartless about to pounce.

"Compliment her later. Fight now," Riku said, smirking when Sora blushed. There was a flash of black and green and then another Heartless was destroyed. Sora made a face at him – and then, feeling competitive, called Thundaga, destroying the Heartless that were left,

When Riku blinked and looked at him, he grinned smugly before turning to Kairi. "Was that you're new spell? It was great! Why haven't you used it before?"

Kairi giggled at his enthusiasm and replied, "I'm still slow at calling it up, and it's more useful when their are a few small ones or just one enemy if I want to do the most damage."

Sora was about to ask more questions when Kairi's eyes focused behind him and she tilted her head, her eyes widening. "Riku, what's that?"

He turned around to face his boyfriend – and received his first good look of the new Keyblade. It wasn't a complicated design, like Ultima. The hilt was leaf-green, and just like the wings had handles to either side. From there the blade extended, a mix of black and silver wrapped together. Sora wasn't surprised at the colors – until he saw the thorns. There was a large one, and then a smaller one just below it, giving it more of a key shape than it would have had otherwise. And the thorns were blood red. Sora's eyes darted to his own hand, where the metal he had shaped the stem and leaves part of the keychain from had bit into his fingers.

"Oh this?" Riku was smiling, a small gentle smile as his eyes found Sora's. he couldn't help it – he blushed as Riku smiled right at him. Despite Kairi's presence it felt more intimate than any of their kisses or exploratory touches. He felt more connection to Riku right then than he ever could have felt from simple touching. Riku continued, his eyes still on Sora, "Sora gave me a present last night. I decided it was called Slender Thorn."

Sora blinked at the name, just glad that the words "red" or "blood" weren't included. It was a very thin Keyblade, so the name was still appropriate. He flushed even more under Kairi's startled gaze. "It just seemed right. I... We should be moving on."

He ran ahead, just enough so he could hide his suddenly burning cheeks. He could hear Kairi beginning to giggle and Riku's warm chuckles and as he stared at the ground, he grinned as well. It was embarrassing to try to explain how his heart had guided him and he knew he would have to eventually. They would both want to try... But at least they were all happy. That was what mattered.

* * *

Entering the city they received many stares. They stared right back – and Sora was amused to note that for once it was he and Kairi that stood out the most. Riku's light hair wasn't that odd in this city, or his bright eyes, though no one had quite the same shade. Of course, Sora was biased and had studied those eyes from up close and seen them from sleepy and happy to angry and violent.

People stared at them. In fact, everywhere they went people stared in surprise and flashes of fear and confusion. He caught the term "from the surface" a few times and frowned, glancing at his friends. Kairi had sidled closer to them as a few stares became hostile while they walked, and Riku's shoulders were tense. He wasn't sure either of them had heard.

"Sometimes what they says sounds like gibberish," Kairi confessed suddenly. Sora blinked and out of the corner of his eyes watched Riku's reaction. The silver-haired boy seemed just as confused as he was.

_'The Keyblades... But why only sometimes?'_ Roxas sounded frustrated, but Sora was more focused on the first part. "Riku, hand her the flowery Keyblade. I think it might help."

He saw Riku's eyes light up in understanding and soon, much to the added tension in the people watching and following them, he had handed her the golden Keyblade. She looked at it, her eyes widening. "I... can hear them now"

Then she scowled at him. "It's not a flowery Keyblade."

"What's its name, then?" Sora asked, curiosity brightening his eyes.

Her brow furrowed and she stared at it. They were approaching the center of the city, and a set of stairs leading to a large building and she absently walked up with them as she stared at it in consternation. "I don't know yet. I should, but... I just don't."

"Huh," Sora said, mulling over it. It was definitely weird, the way it was her Keyblade – it just seemed like it definitely was – yet Riku had it. But it wasn't important enough to think about now.

"Why are we climbing these stairs?" Riku asked suddenly, stopping with his feet on two different steps. Sora paused as well, and Kairi followed his example.

It only took him a moment to come up with the answer. "The people in charge are up here."

He resumed their trek upward, but a hand on his shoulder made him pause and he stared curiously at Riku. The boy was scowling and asked, "How do you know?"

Sora raised an eyebrow and tilted his head. He would have thought Riku would know the answer already. "There's a bunch of stairs leading to a building in the center of the city. Where else would they be?"

Riku matched his face with an incredulous one of his own. "You just assume this? On other worlds too? How did you _survive_?"

"Very well, actually," Sora retorted, a bit miffed. They had done well! And most of the time he hadn't had to ask, they had always had a local guide. He had helped many worlds, saved the whole universe once, and gathered a bunch of super great skills. Of _course_ he had survived. Besides, he never would have given up when Riku and Kairi were still out there and alive, Or if they were dead – then he would have needed to get revenge.

"Uh-huh._Right_. Let me try something." Riku pivoted around and pointed to one of the closest people. They were holding spears defensively and one stiffened as he pointed. "You! Are your leaders up here?"

"Yes," The man answered automatically – only to be scolded by his comrades.

Riku turned back around. "See? That wasn't so hard?"

Sora turned his back and stomped p the stairs. He had been right – so why did it matter if he hadn't asked for directions? It had still been the right way to go. He heard Kairi chirp a collective "Thank you!" to the people following them and then both of his friends were clambering up the stairs after him.

They were only a few steps from the top when the familiar dark portals could be seen farther ahead – and the Heartless were heading away from them. He didn't even need to glimpse at the others to know what to do. He bounded up the stairs ahead of them, the stone under his feet flying by in a gray blur. There were two people, mainly, that the Heartless were after and Sora narrowed his eyes, took another few steps, and feel into a crouch for a brief moment. He pushed off and was heading up and forward, and then spinning and gliding over them to twist and land in front of the two presumed leaders just before the first Heartless reached them. "Get back!"

"Who are you?" A woman's voice asked in a tone that was more like a demand. He decided to ignore it for now in favor of sending Ultima into the pack. There were people in masks beginning to join the fight as Riku and Kairi joined up, but their spears did little damage against the Heartless.

"Stay out of this fight," he heard Riku snapped as he smacked a pack of Heartless off of one young looking warrior that had quickly gone down. "They'll take your heart if you try to fight them."

Sora raised Ultima up and Thundaga came crashing down, giving him a moment to sweep his eyes over the whole battlefield. There were a lot of Heartless. He needed more magic for this, more power if he wanted all of the people trying to help fight to live. He felt Roxas begin to protest but he was already focusing. The bright flash of light sent the Heartless back a moment and then he stood there, all in blue as he raced through the Heartless, shooting those closest and launching spell after spell at those farther away.

He skated over to Kairi for a moment when she stumbled. Firaga took care of those surrounding them and he quickly administered a Potion. "Don't worry, they're almost gone."

"I don't think the ones in the middle are fazed by magic," She called after him and he looked sharply to the Heartless standing there. Were there new Heartless as well? He thought that no one knew how to make the Emblem Heartless anymore. But then again, there had been plenty of new ones during his last journey and he didn't know if the Organization would have bother. Then again, they needed the hearts from the created Heartless.

"I can take care of them," Riku yelled. "If you two take care of the others."

"Sure!" Sora shouted and skated to the other side of the battle to station himself closest to the targets once again. There was somebody behind this, and it would be easier to find them to stop all further attacks – or at least most of them - but Sora was all about going for the immediate threat first. The other one would wait.

He transformed back into his normal clothes just as Riku was dealing with the last of the magic-immune Heartless. He struck a leftover Neoshadow and waited as Kairi and Riku headed over, and for some of the guards to come closer. Observing those in range, he cast a quick Curaga, grinning at the shocked reactions before spinning about and extending his hand to the young man and woman staring at him. "Sorry about that. I'm Sora. Who're you?"

Behind him, he could have sworn he heard Riku's hitting his own forehead with the palm of his hand and Kairi patting his back. He didn't see why they would be reacting that way. He did this all the time.

* * *

"Do you think it's safe for Kairi to be separated from us?" Sora asked as he curiously examined the room they had been given. "It's just, it's dangerous here."

"It's always dangerous. Don't worry about it, she's just across the hall and she can hold off most attacks until we get there." Despite Riku's assurances, Sora glanced over and could see from the way Riku's narrow eyed gaze flicked to the door and the hall beyond it that he wasn't so calm himself on them being separated. "It's just polite, not to object."

Sora raised an eyebrow at that. Riku didn't usually care much about polite. Which meant there was another reason for them being in the same room, separate from Kairi. He paused, stared at the one bed in the room, and then glanced over to the silver-haired boy now leaning over to look out their window. For a moment, he thought of saying something and seeing Riku blush. His eyes flicked to the door that was open just a tiny bit. Carefully, he nudged it closed. It didn't even click as it shut. That was much better.

He crossed the space between them and leaned out the open window curiously, grinning as he heard Riku's sharp intake of breath. "I'm not going to fall."

"You say that _every_ time," Riku answered, and his voice sounded strained. "I'm not having you die the day before you turn seventeen."

"Oh, I'll just have to wait until tomorrow to die then," Sora said carelessly, leaning just a bit farther. Instantly there was a hand fisted in the material on his back. "You wouldn't let me fall when I'm right beside you, now would you?"

_'You're awful, Sora,'_ Roxas accused, sounding amused.

_'Keeps him from brooding, now doesn't it?'_ Sora shot back. Which wasn't quite the purpose and they both knew it, but Sora was still grinning when Riku yanked him back and jerked him around to stare angrily into blue eyes.

"You're never dying on my watch," Riku snapped, his voice tense and filled with more hurt than Sora had meant. He sighed and put a hand on Riku's arm loosely, his thumb rubbing on the skin above his elbow, trying to get him to calm down and loosen his angry grip. Obviously even joking about death wasn't allowed if he wanted a happy, mentally stable boyfriend.

He brushed hair away from Riku's face with his free hand and leaned up. "I know. One of the many reasons."

He left the ending implied and the hand that had been on Riku's arm was then on his shirt, jerking him down just a bit to meet Sora's lips. There was no sound of protest and he snaked an arm out to the edge of the window, bracing them both – unlike him, Riku didn't have a safety net if he forgot how close to the window they were.

There were insistent hands fiddling with zippers of his shirt and Riku's kiss had desperate tones. If Sora had been in a talking mood he would have pointed out to the other boy it was his own fault for being mad for so long and forcing their sessions short with too much thinking.

His mouth found Riku's neck shortly and he grinned at the other boy's groan and pulled back a little. "Shush. We'll have guards in here wondering what's going on."

There was a gleam in Riku's eyes as he looked past Sora for a moment. "Cloth can do a lot to muffle sound."

Sora didn't need to look behind him to know Riku's eyes were on the bed. He very much wanted to just go with it – but he knew exactly where that would put them, and he was a little wiser than he had been right after his sixteenth birthday. And a little cleverer. "We're in a battle zone."

He could see Riku's frustration, clear in his eyes. "We're always going to be in a battle zone from now on when we're alone."

Yet, despite that, Riku was pulling away, knowing he was right. They weren't going to be able to go much past their present stage while they were in danger. Sora grimaced, but shrugged. "Sorry."

"No. I just..." Riku ground his teeth. "It's your birthday tomorrow."

Sora took a moment to digest that and then raised an eyebrow in incredulous surprise. "Riku. I don't want sex for my birthday."

"Why not?" Riku's eyes were wide in astonishment. Sora almost laughed and bit his cheek hard, for once controlling his impulsive nature. Laughing right now would only make Riku angry.

He struggled to find the words, absently brushing one hand through Riku's hair as he searched aqua eyes. "It's not... I don't want your first time – _our_ first time – to be specifically on one date."

He was shifting a little, uncomfortable with the topic, and so was Riku. They never really talked about their relationship. They didn't need to and even Sora, who knew more of the physical side but far less of the emotional was confused now as to what he meant. "There's no rush."

Except there really was sometimes. Sora did want Riku – badly. And that made him pull back more than any battle zone. He didn't want it to just be because Riku felt it would be a good birthday gift. He wanted it to be natural, not forced. But for once Sora was having a hard time putting things into words. Both of them understood actions more than words.

_'You could give him a blowjob. His clothes are easier to undo and put back on than yours,'_ Roxas suggested dryly. Sora choked, suddenly unable to meet Riku's eyes as he blushed crimson. If his Nobody had a boy, he would have strangled him.

* * *

A day and hundreds of Heartless later, Sora was sitting on a beach, looking wistfully out into the water. Queen Kida and Milo had thanked them once again for their help, but he still saw the way they whispered when they thought he didn't watch. He knew what they wondered. They had appeared around the same time that the Heartless problem became so bad. Sometimes, he wondered to. Was their enemy somehow following them and sending more Heartless wherever they were?

"Happy Birthday Sora!" Kairi danced up and grinned down at him. He smiled back, and saw her frown. "Are you alright?"

"Sorry. Just thinking too much. Kinda wondering if the enemy is somehow following us. I mean, it wouldn't be too hard, right?" Sora shrugged, knowing she wouldn't know any better than he did.

She shrugged in answer and sat down beside him, fiddling with a box in her hand. Her eyes kept darting to him – and then suddenly she began to giggle as she stared at his neck. "I see Riku already wished you Happy Birthday today."

"Kai_ri_," He whined, slapping a hand to his neck where he knew there was a mark. A moment later as he tried to control his blush he said mischievously, "You should see his neck."

They stared at each other, both of them blushing now. He began to chuckle first and then she started to giggle again and soon both of them were laughing warmly, perfectly at ease. Neither was particularly surprised when an amused voice asked, "So, having fun without me?"

Sora glanced up as Riku jumped down from a pile of rocks that he had climbed on top of – probably for the express purpose of watching over them. Smiling, he swiped out at the boy's legs, Ultima appearing in his grasp. The silver haired boy fell and he took the opportunity to pounce and give him an enthusiastic kiss. "Hi."

Riku stared at him blankly and he heard Kairi's giggles intensify as the boy made an incoherent noise in his throat. His grin softened into a wide smile and he leaned down, his knees slipping to either side of Riku's hips. He kissed him softly, and felt Riku relax into it, deepening it quickly. This time when he pulled back to hover over him, Riku had an eyebrow raised quizzically. "Any reason for that?"

_'"Because you're oh-so-irresistible and handsome, Riku. I just _had_ to jump you." Self-control is your friend, Sora.' _Sora ignored the commentary at the back of his mind after practically throwing his exasperation at Roxas. "No reason. I just thought I could have just as much fun if I was on top of you."

"I'm pretty sure you can have _more_ fun like that," Kairi said and Sora blinked and looked sideways to see she was on her stomach, her chin propped up on one hand. "Don't mind me. Just wondering what _kind_ of present Riku gave you."

Sora groaned and blushed bright red. He didn't need to look to know Riku's cheeks were tinted pink as well, especially when the taller boy sat up and pushed him away. "I didn't know you had the mind of a pervert, Kairi."

"You're room is right across from mine, and you were _not_ quiet, Riku," Kairi commented pointedly. Sora choked and opened his mouth, closed it, opened it again, and then finally just decided he was better off not saying anything until his face was less red.

Riku didn't have that problem. "We weren't having sex!"

Kairi tilted her head, and now _she_ was blushing. "Really? Um, then what...?"

_'This is your fault,'_ Sora told Roxas accusingly.

_'No one told you to take the suggestion,'_ Roxas shot back, sounding almost bored. _'I didn't really think you would.'_

Sora ignored the flash of darker feelings from Roxas that were a bit like jealousy and a bit like resignation and mostly the same things both of them pretended weren't there. He focused on Kairi who was looking at both he and Riku – and he knew Riku wasn't going to answer. He just blushed brighter when her eyes landed on him.

"Hey, is that for me?" He asked suddenly, his eyes flicking to the box in her hand. It was a good distraction, as both of his friends also focused on the box. Kairi blushed and held it out to him. He took it gingerly, turning it over in his hand. For once he was careful with the wrapping paper, his slim finger smoothing out the creases and pulling gently at the tape. It was wrapped tightly and neatly, and better than Riku had done on his smaller presents, which had been half-heartedly, wrapped and stuffed in a bag.

Inside was a chain necklace. He could feel the magic hovering at his fingertips as he pulled it up to reflect sunlight into the water. Kairi explained, "The man I bought it from said it was good luck. Even if it really isn't, the sentiment can't hurt."

Sora smiled brightly. "Your good luck charms work Kairi, so if you think it'll work it probably does."

Kairi smiled shyly back at him and he glanced down at the chain. There were strange ruins put in, obviously the careful work of hours, if not days or weeks. It would be tighter on his neck than the crown necklace. He unclasped it and brought it around his neck, fumbling to put it on when he couldn't see it. There was a disdainful snort and then gentle fingers pushed his awkward ones away. "I'll do it. You'll ruin her gift if you don't stop fumbling."

He rolled his eyes, but didn't dispute Riku's statement. Kairi cleared her throat and he glanced back at her. "So what _did_ Riku get you?"

"I went shopping at Land of the Dragons. There were some interesting things there. Some powerful protection items." Riku's fingers brushed over his neck and he could have sworn that the boy was leaning forward more than he had to.

"He bought me a book too. Elemental spells, mostly. I'm thinking I might try to see if I can learn an earth spell." He was excited about that – he wasn't much for reading, but it was better than he thought, and he could always ask Donald or Merlin for help later if he had problems. Most magic he had just picked up on his own from watching and feeling it around him. It couldn't be too hard to learn from a book.

Kairi looked faintly surprised. "That's it? I mean... Well, you two are together but that doesn't seem like it would be anything different than usual."

Riku shifted away from him and he met the taller boy's amused eyes. "You're better at explaining these things."

Sora rolled his eyes. More like Riku just didn't want to explain anything too mushy. He thought about it for a moment, but it wasn't a hard answer. "Why should there be changes? We're still best friends. We're just more as well."

"I got him a skateboard, too," Riku offered, grinning at Sora's wide eyes. "I was going to give it to you later, when there was somewhere better to use it."

"I can use a skateboard anywhere!" Sora boasted and twisted around to move closer and stare at him pleadingly. "Where _is_ it?"

"Later, Sora," Riku said, looking amused. He was about to push a bit more – but then relented. He owed Riku a bit of time to give him a_present_ when he was keeping a secret. He caught the brief flash of surprise – and disappointment. Riku had _expected_ him to force the issue. He grinned a bit smugly to himself. They did like riling each other up.

"I still don't get it. It just seems... unromantic," Kairi muttered. Sora stared at her, and could feel Riku doing the same.

Finally, he could only try and explain it once more. "Kairi, we're _boys_."

Both of his friends stared at him. He shrugged uncomfortably – and then Kairi giggled and Riku smirked and cocked his head toward Kairi. "He has a point. We don't get into that sappy stuff."

_'Says the boy who thought sex would be a good present,'_ Roxas snorted. Sora snickered – but was quickly cut off when, in the distance, there was a roar. Quickly following that were screams and all three sprang to their feet and swiveled to face the city. There, floating beneath the crystal, were three giant Heartless. They reminded him of a spider – if said spider's head was on a neck and had giant wings.

The flowery Keyblade exchanged hands, and Ultima's familiar weight was soon in his hands. The three looked at each other in silent resignation before bolting toward the battlefield.

* * *

Master Form wore off just as the Heartless he had chosen to fight faded into dark and left behind a giant pink heart, floating upward. Tiredly, he took a potion. He had gone into Valor first, but that form had faded before he had worn down the Heartless. He was tired – but he needed to move. Kairi needed his help.

He turned and for a moment was torn. Both of his friends were having problems – they didn't have his advantage of forms. But he was sure Riku would wear his Heartless down soon, and join him in helping Kairi. He turned and sprinted toward Kairi. The girl had her Keyblade held up defensively as the large spider shaped Heartless dove down toward her.

Sora joined her, sliding in to hold Ultima up above her Keyblade and together they managed to deflect it away. Kairi fell to one knee, panting. "Sora..."

"I know. They're strong." His eyes slid worriedly over to her before he smiled brightly. "But we're stronger."

_'Or we will be,'_ He thought grimly, and felt Roxas stir uneasily._'Don't worry. I'll wait awhile before trying another form – it takes up more energy without people helping and I need that energy. I just wish I could go Final.'_

_'So do I,'_ Roxas replied earnestly. Sora helped Kairi up as the Heartless recovered and flew up, farther than either of them could see. Sora tensed, ready for it to come from anywhere – except from behind.

It had landed somewhere behind them and instead of flying had used its eight legs to bear down on them with amazing speed. Sora spun to face it – but was thrown back. He tumbled down a flight of stairs before he caught himself, one hand catching a step and pushing him up to flip and land on his feet. His eyes snapped upward, his determined spark turning to frantic worry as he saw one thin, sharp leg slash at Kairi. The girl crumpled and he lost sight of her.

He needed more power. He dashed upward, frantically reaching for the power that his outfit gave him. He needed Master Form. He couldn't let his friends get hurt anymore. Riku wasn't done yet, Kairi was down – if she weren't defenseless he would have been less desperate. She was getting better at taking care of herself.

He grasped the power that came to him, focusing on master form. There was a flash of light – that quickly turned to darkness. _'Shit. Sora!'_

Roxas tried, but it was no use. There were no coherent thoughts in Sora's mind now. As the light faded away the Sora that crouched there was oozing with darkness. Glimmering yellow eyes flashed from one Keybearer to the next, and then to the Heartless. There was the Keys, the allies, the non-prey. Everything else was fair game – and the ones made of darkness needed to be gotten rid of. They were harming what was his.

In a flash of darkness Sora galloped in front of the one wielding the gold key and struck upward into and through the heartless. His claws ripped it asunder, carving into the darkness until he could feel the heart it had taken. With a swift swipe of his claws, he had released it, and the Heartless was gone. He flipped and landed on his feet in a crouch, silent as his yellow eyes turned to stare at the next Heartless as it disappeared. The one with the darker Key had finished it off. The male turned toward him and he tilted his head inquisitively. Instinct told him to look for more threats to his people, yet the other protector was staring at him instead.

It didn't matter. Sora bounded around them, looking for more darkness, more things to fight and tear. It was his purpose. Something pale haired and humanoid stuck some weapon in him. More of them were coming. This was a new threat. Claws and darkness tore into the first. They made different cries, and instead of darkness there was red liquid. This struck a distant part of Sora as wrong, but they were a threat, and he needed to kill them.

There was a flash of the darker Key and he spun, a strange keening cry issuing as the Key hit him. And then it came again, and Sora dropped to the stone and knew no more.

* * *

End Chapter Eleven. 

I actually almost wanted to switch formats a bit for anti form and make it more stream of consciousness but decided against it. Anyway, review please! Feedback is always welcome and if you have questions I will probably answer them if you're signed it because it has that nice reply button then. Next chapter Kairi focus, and the question of where and who those big Heartless came from. Also, for those who have never seen the movie/couldn't guess, they're in Atlantis from Atlantis: The Lost Empire.


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything Disney.

* * *

Chapter 12

Kairi stared at Riku's trembling back as the boy stood over his unconscious friend, the Keyblade that had sent Sora into that state clenched tightly in his fist. The Atlanteans were babbling at them, accusations flowing wildly. Riku was paying attention to none of it. She didn't know what had happened with Sora. She didn't know why the thing that he had turned into had attacked the Atlantean – though she had a feeling from the little she had glimpsed that he _had_been attacked first. But Sora – or whatever that thing had been – had torn right into the soldier.

But while she didn't know what had happened or why Riku was just staring, she did know that something needed to be done about the outrage. She stepped around the boys and stood in front of Sora's unconscious form, her back straight and the Keyblade by her side. "Everyone, calm down."

The accusations became a roar. She sighed, trying to stay calm as she raised her voice. "Please! I can't answer anything if you all talk over each other!"

None of them seemed to care. The crowd was growing, and the soldiers were raising their weapons offensively, their faces hidden by masks. She caught Riku moving to sweep Sora up behind her and breathed a sigh of relief. That was one problem taken care of. Riku could take Sora away if they needed to run. She raised her Keyblade in a deliberate movement, letting all eyes follow it. When it was pointed straight up toward the floating carved heads, she let out a single Light Flare, the bright white orb shooting up and spinning until it disappeared in a flash right below the power source.

Everyone's attention was on her, and sought out the eyes of the crowd, hoping Queen Kida would come soon. "We defeated the Heartless, mostly thanks to Sora. The only reason he attacked one of your soldiers was because he was attacked first. Please step back."

She hoped she was right. If someone had seen differently, she would have to defend their retreat. Riku had to carry Sora if there was trouble. She didn't know if she could fight against so many by herself – especially since she couldn't kill them. They were human, not Heartless or Nobodies.

Thankfully, they did calm down, the din lowering to low murmurs and she took a wary step back. No one stepped forward or raised weapons. Trying to keep the relief from her voice she said, "Please inform Queen Kida that we will be in our quarters to recover from the battle and will be leaving once we have recovered."

They would have to raid Sora's pockets for a Mega-potion for all three – and an Elixir for Sora himself. Hopefully that would wake him up. She was worried and needed answers – and Riku would probably want them even more. Sora had a lot of explaining to do.

After another tense moment, she heard Riku moving away and she stared at the crowd another instant before pivoting on her heel and following, keeping her back straight and her paces even. They couldn't mess up now. An instant of weakness and the frightened people might attack from what they saw as preemptive self-defense.

Only when they were out of sight of the crowds did she wince and let herself begin to limp, one hand pressing to her stomach. The Heartless had scratched through the fabric of her clothes, making the blood less visible. The pink of her outfit and the fact that they healed themselves often made any blood stains less of a big deal, but there was one growing, and she was out of potions.

"Can you last until we're in the gummi ship?" Riku asked. She stared at him a moment, but sighed. He always noticed.

"We can't go to the gummi ship. I promised we would be in the quarters they gave us, Riku. And there might be a Nobody here – someone had to have set those Heartless on us." She saw his eyes darken and tried to be firm. They couldn't just leave while these people were in need.

"Fine," He snapped. "But when Sora wakes up – "

"When Sora wakes up, I think both of us we'll have forgotten about this conversation altogether," She said grimly.

* * *

A mega-potion worked wonders – two did even more. And an Elixir healed Sora, but didn't wake him up. That surprised her, and both she and Riku searched his pockets until they found a whispy yellow orb in his pockets and broke it open to apply the liquid on him. In moments, he was waking up.

"Someone get the name of that ship," Sora muttered as he woke up. Kairi's lips twitched into a small smile. It was impossible not to smile at him. He couldn't have meant to do anything wrong – this was Sora.

"That would be Slender Thorn, and it was no ship that hit that oddly dark version of you." Riku's dry voice made Sora freeze and Kairi watched the emotions play out on both their faces carefully. Riku was angry, and hurt – which wasn't that different than he had been in the Underworld. Sora... was definitely feeling guilty. And _scared_.

It was the last emotion she saw that made her own heart beat a bit faster. Sora was rarely truly scared of something. But he was scared now. And she couldn't fathom the reason. Clearing her throat before Riku and Sora could get into a fight, she asked, "Sora, what was that?"

The brunet shifted uncomfortably on his and Riku's bed, fidgeting nervously. Together both she and Riku chorused, "Sora!"

He jumped and met her eyes first. She had to admit if she had the choice she wouldn't have wanted to be him when he and Riku were alone. The tall boy was bristling indignantly and only seemed to be getting angrier the longer Sora was quiet. Sora was barely audible as he murmured, "That was Anti-Form."

_'It's a form?'_ Naminé's question rang in her mind, and she echoed it out loud. "It's a form like Valor?"

"Definitely_not_ like Valor," Riku growled, his eyes boring into Sora's skull. "The others never smelled like darkness."

Sora flinched and Kairi frowned in Riku's direction. He wasn't paying her any attention. She wished she hadn't let the Keyblade disappear. She was sure Light Flare could get Riku's attention just as it had the natives. Sora's shifting on the bed caught her attention and she watched as he stood up and stared out the window. "It's a form like them only because the clothes gave it form. But I choose to turn into the others. Anti-Form just... _happens_ sometimes. When I'm trying to turn into one of the others."

Kairi took a moment to digest it – but Riku wasn't. He was shifting to block Sora's view of the window. "You lied to me."

Sure enough, Sora shifted his eyes away from Riku. Kairi sighed, and observed them both sadly as the brunet answered, "I didn't want you to worry."

"Oh Sora," She whispered, and watched Riku grow angrier. Riku always worried, and he observed both him and herself almost fanatically to make sure they were both healthy and _there_. There was no way he wouldn't have found out eventually – as had been proven.

"Damn it! I already _told_ you I was worried. Stop using that excuse! I've been worried. I'm always going to be worried when someone I love smells like they were a fucking Heartless themself. And that's what you looked like, Sora! Have you seen yourself like that? _You look like a Heartless_. What part of that statement made it seem like a good idea _not_ to tell us?" Riku was yelling by the time he reached the final word, but she didn't care. She was more focused on the way his voice cracked slightly and how his arms shook slightly as his hands curled into fists.

"Riku..." She murmured and looked to Sora pleadingly. Silently, she tried to entreat him to say something as his eyes met hers. She felt Naminé stir and look out and knew she was trying to do the same to Roxas, despite the fact he couldn't see her. Sora's eyes slid away, guilty and stunned and she felt her shoulders slump. They were at a breaking point. Sora was the only one who could fix this, and if he didn't his relationship with Riku would be strained, if not broken – and the ties between the three of them would definitely be frayed.

His eyes flashed back to hers and she saw him nod slightly. She glanced at Riku, who had his eyes closed. She didn't know if he was struggling to calm himself, or waiting for the axe to drop.

"I know what it looks like. I saw myself in the water once in Land of the Dragons. Maybe it would be better if I hadn't, and Goofy and Donald had never told me before that. But I remember what it looks like." He paused, and took a shaky breath, blue eyes skimming Riku's face quickly, searching for something. She stepped closer to them both.

"How in control are you?" She asked, putting a hand on Riku's arm and then one on Sora's. Both of them looked at her and she smiled at them equally. Sora still needed to answer why he hadn't told them – and especially Riku – but they would work back up to that.

Sora was biting on his lips again, sucking them in and bright white teeth showing. His eyes were distant and out of focus. She wasn't sure if he was talking to Roxas, or thinking of how to answer. When he did speak, it was hesitant and confused. "It's not... it _is_ me. Just... Not this me. I don't think like I do now. And when I think of it now it's almost like someone else, but it _is_ me and the memories are like any memories, fuzzy in places and crystal clear in others."

"How do you think when you're like that?" Riku's eyes had slowly traveled from her to Sora, his curiosity overwhelming his anger. She mentally thanked Sora for talking. They had enough trouble without straining their relationships any.

Sora frowned in concentration. "It's more like... instincts. There are just two groups. Or maybe three. There's prey, possible prey, and... mine."

"Yours?" She asked, Riku echoing her just a beat behind. That sounded odd. She could understand the other two, considering how the - ...how _he_ had acted.

"Yeah, just... people who belong to me." He peeked up, grinning just a bit at them. "You know. The people I love. You two."

Kairi tilted her head inquisitively. _'Odd,'_ Naminé chimed in._'I've never heard of such a thing. He really is unique. His darkness takes over, but still recognizes his important people even if in darker terms.'_

_'He did as a Heartless too. Why should this be different?'_ Kairi asked. She smiled softly as Sora's eyes met hers. She remembered when he had first fallen into darkness – after saving her. And then Riku had saved them both, finally realizing what was really going on.

_'This is more dangerous than that Heartless,'_ Naminé reminded her as Sora's eyes flicked to Riku's.

The silver haired boy's arms were crossed, and his eyes were hard and uncompromising. "You still should have told me."

"Yeah. I probably should have," Sora admitted. Riku didn't seem to know what to say to that and she found herself the one asking the question that needed to be asked.

"Why didn't you?" She didn't understand it. Sora told them everything. He shouldn't have kept it a secret – especially for so long. She watched his face change, his eyes falling to the floor and his cheeks flushing red. Her eyes found Riku's and they exchanged a worried glance.

"I'm the Keyblade Master." She had to lean forward to hear his ashamed whisper. "I should be stronger than this. My darkness shouldn't be able to take over."

She kept a careful eye on both boys. Riku had come to terms with his own darkness. She didn't think he would react badly to Sora's – but he would to Sora keeping it from him. Oddly, he looked stricken, and she felt a chill go down her spine as he asked, "Why can it, Sora? Even with the clothes, this isn't normal. Someone shouldn't be able to turn into something so close to a Heartless unless..."

Riku trailed off, but Kairi knew what he was implying, and why he looked so stunned. She reached out for him at the same time as Sora did, but he had already taken a step toward the door. Sora's voice was firm for the first time since he woke up as he met Riku's eyes, "It's not your fault."

"Really?" Riku asked harshly, voice hollow and his back to them. He had his head turned slightly toward Sora, glancing back through a curtain of hair. "Because I'm thinking that the reason Anti-Form exists is the same reason Roxas does."

"And that wasn't your fault! You know it wasn't!" Sora lunged for the other boy and Kairi quickly backed away. She wouldn't interfere in this. They had their own unique ways to deal with Riku's brooding. Her hands clutched at their bed, the smooth material curling under her hands as she tried to keep her balance while backing away from their upcoming fight.

Riku tried to throw the brunet off of him, but Sora had managed to get a good grip. Oddly for once he wasn't fighting and Kairi watched with mystified eyes as he simply clung to the taller boy's back as Riku attempted to loosen his grip.

When Riku slammed them both back into the wall, then Sora fought back, kicking him in the knees. Kairi watched with mystified eyes as Riku snarled in pain and threw Sora past him and to the floor, tackling him soon after. What followed was nothing like their usual spars or wrestling matches, but instead seemed a no holds barred fight where Riku tried alternately to push Sora away or pin him down and Sora just tried to stay in as much contact with Riku, actually trying to hurt him only when it became either hit the other boy or be knocked away.

"You know, I think you're both being silly." She waited for that to sink in and both boys paused and looked up at her after a moment. "Riku, it's not your fault. Sora, Riku's not going to do anything stupid and can fight anything likely to come after us long enough for you to help. And you should have told us. Instead of focusing on what caused it, maybe you should both be trying to figure out a way to stop it. Would that satisfy your guilt, Riku?"

Her lips twitched at their rapidly blinking eyes and stunned expressions. Their first instinct was always to fight. Sora started to shift away from Riku and stand up. He did stand up but he didn't move farther away from Riku when the boy put a hand on his shoulder. Riku was looking at her, not Sora, but she smiled at the gesture. At least both of them realized when they were being stupid now.

"Final Form makes it happen less often," Sora offered and she felt her brow furrow. She had heard of Final Form, but she had never seen him use it. She glanced at Riku and found him wearing the same expression.

"Why don't you use that form more often? I can't remember ever seeing it." Kairi watched the rapid shift of expressions on Sora's face until it settled on a frown. He was struggling with something, but she couldn't understand what.

"I can't change into Final Form by myself," He said finally, and she understood.

Or she thought she did. "You need Donald and Goofy?"

"No. Not them specifically. Just... more energy. Even then I get tired more quickly. Afterwards. Roxas too." He fell silent a moment and then shrugged. "I can't use energy from you two."

"Why not?" Riku asked, stepping aside so he could look at Sora's face. Kairi sighed at the suspicion in his voice. Riku was going to be constantly suspicious for the whole conversation if his behavior so far was any indication.

"Because it would take too much energy from you. You wouldn't be able to fight while I was in Final Form. Any fight I would want to use Final Form in would be too dangerous to just have one person fighting," Sora explained. Kairi smiled, despite the answer. It was like him to have thought through the effects on everyone else despite the fact Final Form would keep him from turning into something he didn't want to. Then he added, "And... I never attacked people before. Just Heartless and Nobodies. Things of darkness. I didn't know I _would_ when I was like that."

"To be fair to... you." That was going to get confusing. But Sora was referring to it as if it was him and so would she. "You did get attacked first. I think."

"You were. You didn't attack him until he attacked you," Riku confirmed. Sora's face brightened – and then fell. Kairi's heart clenched at the sudden concern on his face.

"Is the soldier okay?" Sora asked, and Kairi couldn't answer. She was almost sure that Sora hadn't hurt the man enough to kill him, but he hadn't been alright.

She couldn't lie to him. "I don't know." As his face fell she quickly reassured him, "He won't die! He's just... injured."

Oh," Sora said, and sat down on his and Riku's bed. She watched him silently, and glanced at Riku, who was looking back at her expectantly. He seemed to realize she expected him to do something and the expression that formed on his face was one of mild panic. Evidently, he didn't know what to do either.

They stood in awkward silence for a few minutes while Sora stared at the floor and they stared at each other. Finally she shifted her weight, hesitated a moment, and then moved, crossing the few steps and sitting on one side of Sora, reaching for his hand. He let her take it, and she watched Riku copy her movement. She shifted closer until their sides were touching, giving him silent comfort.

* * *

She met Milo and Kida alone, leaving Sora in Riku's hopefully capable hands. Sora would bounce back, either way. He just needed to let it sink in.

"We would appreciate it if we were allowed to stay longer. It is too much of a coincidence that there were three of those below your power source. It is possible that someone is behind it, working to ruin your city." Another Nobody, in Kairi's mind. She wouldn't be caught so easily this time. She would listen to the part of her that was uneasy next time.

"Is it not also possible that it is an enemy targeting you?" Kida asked, cocking her head to the side. Kairi had been used to Kida's insatiable curiosity in the few previous conversations and this formal meeting was something she just wasn't used to.

"It's possible. But the goals of our enemy aren't known and your power source is too big of a prize to leave around." Kairi could see why any dark creature would want it. To be able to convert it and use it would be a blow against the light. It was warm, their power, and made of light at the moment – but she didn't doubt that their enemy was clever enough to find a way to change it. They had found a way to destroy Destiny Islands.

"Excuse me miss, but how do we know _you_ don't want it?" Milo spoke up, his eyes expressing more curiosity than outright suspicion. With a nervous smile he explained, "It's happened before. A-actually the people I originally came here with tried to steal it."

A familiar deep voice asked from the doorway, "What the heck would we use it for? I don't know about Kairi and Sora, but I don't really have space to put it."

"Riku, I've seen your room. You don't have space for _you_, never mind anything else," She said before thinking about what it would mean. Even as her breath escaped on the last syllable she remembered he didn't have a real room. None of them had rooms now, or homes.

She fought down the tears that automatically rose and swallowed, trying to look for the same reaction in Riku – but he seemed confused at her expression. It was Queen Kida who asked, "Is something wrong?"

"I..." What could she say? That she wanted her home back? She wanted to wake up in her bed the next morning and wanted for them to go swimming around the waters of their play island. She wanted to talk to Selphie and groan to Tidus about homework and wanted to see Wakka challenging the boys to blitzball.

"Oh," Riku muttered, apparently getting it. "You miss home."

She nodded silently, curling her fingers up into loose fists and staring down. She jumped when Riku's hand was placed on her shoulder. She hadn't heard him come up. She looked up and found him smiling gently down at her before the expression turned serious and he slid his gaze over to the queen and king. "Look, that?" He raised a hand and pointed at the circling faces and the blue glow. "Is too much trouble. We have enough trouble, we don't need your share too. Just let us search the city, and we'll leave in the morning. If they don't strike again, we'll leave."

Her head snapped up and she opened her mouth, only to feel his hand tighten. She stopped immediately, wondering what he was doing. They couldn't just leave these people here while they were still in danger. But when she searched his face she saw only determination. He had to have a plan.

"We will allow one of you to search the city. Your friend... I don't believe my people would appreciate seeing him right now." Kida's eyes reflected her sympathy, but Kairi still wanted to protest. Sora hadn't done anything _wrong_. But she bowed her head, willing herself to be silent, especially when she saw Riku's free hand tightening into a fist, despite the polite smile on his face.

"I'll do it," Riku offered. "Kairi can watch Sora. If we're excused?"

"Of course," Both Milo and Kida said, and Kairi let Riku pull her out of there. She wasn't content with any of this – but Riku knew what he was doing, usually. Except, as they reached the door way Kida called, "Kairi, if you would like, you may bring your friend here and we could all train together. I noticed that you were not as adept with your weapon as your friends. Perhaps I can give some help."

Kairi felt Riku stiffen slightly but for once ignored it, her eyes brightening as she turned and met Kida's eyes. "I would like that. Very much."

She let Riku pull her out after that, but couldn't help grinning. This was what she needed. Even if it was only for the rest of the day. She turned to Riku and ignored his scowl, asking brightly, "So, what if you don't find anything?"

"Then we leave. I doubt there will be much more than the normal Heartless once we're gone. Whoever is after us will focus on us, and not this world. The power source... We can't protect it more than we've done. We'll have to hope it isn't an actual goal of theirs." Riku slid his eyes back to the door they had recently come out of. "I guess I should give you the Keyblade. You use it more often than your daggers."

She could tell he didn't approve. For once, she had to ignore it. She wanted to do this and he wasn't protesting – probably because he knew she wanted it. "That would be great. I... What if I want to practice with the daggers as well?"

"Give the Keyblade to Sora." Riku's eyes shifted away and she saw him frown, looking thoughtful.

"How do you know?" She asked, studying his expression.

"I just do," He answered, and she left it at that. Answers would come in time, and truly the fact that she could hold that Keyblade at all was a miracle that none of them understood. She wouldn't question it, not yet.

* * *

She barely deflected a blow aimed to her middle and attempted a counter – but somehow Ultima was there beneath her guard. She could sense him pulling his strength at the last second so she only stumbled, but it was frustrating. She had been better before – but now her limbs were leaden. Dagger practice and Keyblade sparring had worn her out. But she knew in a real battle she would have to keep going.

"Time for a break," Sora said, and he actually sounded winded. She looked up hopefully and saw him grinning at her, and his breathing was a bit fast. Not as heavy as hers, but she had actually made him put out an effort.

"You're getting good fast." He looked thoughtful as he stared at the Keyblade in her hands. "I guess it makes sense. I mean, we have to get stronger as we fight. I don't even have much style to my fighting. I think your style is more graceful than either mine or Riku's."

"But I'm doing well?" She asked, needing to hear it again. He blinked, seemingly surprised – but was quick to smile reassuringly.

"Yup! I figured you could use a break though. You started getting clumsy," He commented and her heart sank. How was she to last in a longer fight without needing them to help her if she couldn't keep from getting tired?

"Hey," He said softly as she turned her eyes away. "I didn't mean that it was bad. At least you give signs when you're tired. I just keep fighting until i collapse – ask Leon sometime. First time I fought him I fainted afterward – still got 'im good though."

It was impossible to keep being unhappy when Sora seemed so smug about his own defeat – he didn't seem to care he had lost. He had come so far since then – she didn't think she could catch up, but she could at least get good enough not to be a burden. She didn't want Sora thinking he needed to transform just to help her – not when there was a chance Anti-form would show up.

"It was a pleasure sparring with you," Kida said, smiling from the side of the room they had chosen. She had helped Kairi with her daggers and unlike Sora had shown no mercy. Everything was blunted, so there was no real damage – but there were bruises. Kairi had decided to let them heal naturally, as a reminder she was improving.

"Likewise," Kairi replied, her eyes warming on her new friend.

That was when they heard the screams. Her head shot up and she ignored the way her limbs dragged as she straightened and pulled the Keyblade up to a defensive position. Both Kida and Sora seemed to have the same opinion as she did. Kida took up her spear and Sora lifted Ultima once again.

Sora led the charge into the hallway. Kairi followed as quickly as she could, trying to stay right behind him. It was impossible. The second she stepped into the hallway there was darkness. Yellow eyes peeked out from it and Kairi jerked back, remembering when Sora's eyes had been yellow and unblinking like theirs. There weren't any Emblem Heartless – all of them were natural. Shadows, Neoshadows and even some Darkballs all swarmed around them, blotting out the evening sun.

Her Light Flare was the only light for a moment and despite the fact she saw it hit and knew it killed the Shadows near it, all she saw was more darkness once it was blotted out. Even Thundaga didn't light up as much as she wished it would. She found herself terrified. Before in other battles she had always been able to see the light. Now there was only darkness, only her own waning strength to go on.

_'Your strength is greater than you think. Step forward, Princess of Heart.'_ It was Naminé, but her voice was sharp, a triumphant voice in the dark. _'What light do you need besides your own?'_

The Keyblade in her hand shone as she swung it forward. There was a name in her mind now and Radiant Spirit sliced through a Neoshadow down low and she danced around the darkness, striking fast and light. There was little strength in her style, but much speed and grace and she ignored the way her muscles screamed, delighted at the new feeling of the Keyblade. It felt more like it was hers – there was still something else in it, but she could feel Radiant Spirit now.

Unfortunately, her new delight and adrenaline rush couldn't give her strength for long. A Darkball smashed into her back, it's dark teeth digging into her shoulder. She struck at it and let off a Light Flare, but she could feel the blood now trickling down her shoulder.

Her movements didn't stay steady for much longer. Only a few more minutes and she could feel herself slipping. The Heartless seemed to sense her weakness and pressed closer, their claws seeking her heart. She tightened her grasp on Radiant Spirit and tried to slip away for a breather – but there was nowhere to go.

"Hold on!" She heard Sora shout and couldn't tell if it was to her or someone else. But her feet slipped and she went down just as Curaga's healing energy swam through her, filling her being. Much better than a Potion, even a High Potion. She felt better – though the bruises from earlier would be gone. The wound on her shoulder was now only throbbing, and other scratches she had gathered were healed, other injuries closed up. But she was on the ground and the Heartless were jumping onto her.

"Kairi!" Darkness in the darkness destroyed some of the Heartless on her, others backing up just enough that she could breathe and climb to her feet. She wished she had the skills to roll to her feet like the boys could. A hand helped her up and she knew from the size and grip it was Riku. He pulled her close, protective. She turned slightly and jumped back into the fight.

This time she kept careful track of where Riku was and by the short distance between them at all times she guessed he was doing the same. Light Flares and Dark Auras flew in every direction and their two Keyblades cut through the Heartless. He was doing much better than she and she wasn't quite in synch with him – but she would learn.

She knew they were actually making progress when the sun began to shine through the windows. Now that she could see she tried to get glimpses of her other friends. She saw Kida almost immediately, slumped against a wall – but some of her soldiers had found her.

As she fought, she realized she didn't see Sora. In fact the last she had heard had been when he did Curaga. He had been tired, just like she had, but he hadn't had Riku's support. Riku, who had been fresh and hadn't been sparring off and on for hours. Sora hadn't been as exhausted as she had – but he had still been tired. Her eyes flicked across the battlefield as the ranks of Heartless shrank to just a few.

Riku took care of the last few and she began to spin in place, slowly looking around. "Riku..."

She heard him shift and the distance between them disappeared. She looked up at him and saw her own worry reflected in his eyes. "Where's Sora?"

He didn't answer for a moment, his gaze sweeping the hallway. He pulled her forward and said, "C'mon. He must have been driven down one of the other hallways."

She followed Riku, trying to ignore the carnage the Heartless had left behind. Somehow, she couldn't help but feel it was there fault that so many Heartless had shown up. In an attempt to distract herself she tried to figure out Riku's pattern, but he didn't seem to have one. Her eyes strayed to the blood on the floors and she snapped her eyes back to Riku. There had been a lot of Heartless – she couldn't help but wonder how many hearts they had claimed.

"Don't look at it," Riku said. She glanced up, but he was still striding forward, not facing her. "We can't do anything about that now."

"I don't think Sora could have been driven this far away," She said instead of replying. He stopped and looked around.

"No. Probably not – but... Here. The stairs." He strode forward again, his long legs making her have to jog to catch up. She peered down the stairs. But still didn't see what Riku was looking at. She tried to follow his gaze, but all she could make out was a faint black patch on the green grass below.

Naminé's anguished cry of, _'Sora! Roxas!'_ made her realize what that was – though she still couldn't see how he had fallen down there. The battle must have been longer than she realized. She had the sudden urge to just jump down and gripped the stone banister until it receeded. She wasn't sure if that had been her or Naminé, but she knew that fall would kill her. Radiant Spirit seemed to throb in her hand, in time with her pain.

She had fallen behind now, Riku taking the stairs two or three at a time and rushing. More Heartless could have attacked Kida's home and if she kept following, she knew he wouldn't even look back. Not until they reached Sora and saw the damage done to him.

He was alive. She knew that. She didn't know how she knew, but she knew that, and she kept her steps careful, letting Riku get farther and farther ahead of her. He probably had more healing items than she did – she only had one potion left, and would have to ask Sora for more – though she didn't know many more he had left either.

By the time she reached their side Riku was crouched down and was roughly shaking Sora. There was an empty potion bottle nearby so Kairi assumed Riku had tried that already. "Riku, that's not going to help."

He stopped and looked up long enough to scowl. "The potion didn't wake him."

She bit her lip before the words she wanted to say could come out. He was probably too injured for a potion to wake him – but Riku wouldn't like hearing that. "I need to learn Cure. I've been trying. I've almost got it – but we need someone who has a high powered healing spell, besides Sora."

She knew it didn't really matter right now, but she was trying to distract Riku as she slid a few more feet forward to peer into Sora's face. His clothes were ripped, but she assumed they fixed themselves – or that Sora had learned how to sew – because they were never ripped for long. And there were still bruises and injuries, obvious ones. She had to wonder what he had looked like before being given a potion. "Does he have any hi-potions?"

Riku rummaged through Sora's pockets and she waited patiently while he managed to find one and tip Sora's head back and pour the bottle down his throat. They both waited and Kairi sighed when the injuries healed up more but the bruises remained and he didn't stir. She laid a hand on Riku's shoulder when he began to shake the boy again. Naminé was hovering, and had something to say. "Give me a moment."

_'Try using Radiant Spirit. His heart and yours were once shared, and he should feel the Keyblade.' _Kairi immediately raised the Keyblade. There was something to that, and later if she remembered she would pursue the thought Naminé had given her. For now, she stepped past Riku and gently laid the tip of Radiant Spirit on top of Sora's chest, directly above where his heart would be.

_'Please wake up,'_ She called silently. The Keyblade glowed briefly and there was an answering flash from Sora's hands – two answering flashes, to her surprise, and she caught the brief outline of Ultima and Oblivion before both disappeared and Sora groaned. She blinked, feeling strangely lightheaded for some reason and stumbled back. An arm caught her as her knees buckled and she leaned back into Riku's chest as they watched Sora wake up. They could have waited, she knew – but it was odd to see Sora unconscious. Very odd.

"Shut up, Roxas," He muttered first and she exchanged puzzled glances with Riku before blue eyes opened and stared at them a moment. His eyes flicked toward Radiant Spirit for a moment and there was a look in his eyes that was more reminiscent of Roxas than Sora, but it faded by the time he was looking back at them, granting them a small smile as he sat up. There was a wince and Riku reached forward to help him sit up, shifting her slightly, but not letting go.

She had to smile herself as Sora allowed himself to be pulled closer. Riku was staring off over their heads but his back was tense and his grip firm. Neither of them were about to break it. She tilted her head and met Sora's eyes. "I guess you got the brunt of the attack. No one to help you. We should have expected another attack so soon. They're trying to kill us."

Sora's smile faltered and his eyes slid to the side. "I don't think it was someone behind this. I think it was natural."

"Natural?" She and Riku asked sharply. Sora raised his hands and pressed a hand each to their hearts. She stared at him, confused, and glanced at Riku. He was frowning, his eyes narrowed. She thought he had a bit more of an idea – but he was quick thinking.

Sora sighed, and didn't move his hands as he explained, "We're two Keyblade Wielders and a Princess of Heart – who also wields a Keyblade. Even one of us is enough to attract Heartless. Leon had to take my Keyblade away at first to keep them from sensing me. That doesn't work for long. With all three of us in one place – we're like a big tasty treat."

Kairi ignored his description in favor of the meaning behind it. "They came after us? This is our fault? It never happened at Destiny Islands!"

"We weren't moving around so much then – and that was before the darkness began growing like it is now." He didn't deny it was their fault, but instead of the guilt she expected there was a determined gleam in his eyes. "We'll just have to move faster and get stronger."

"This has happened before to you?" Kairi questioned, feeling alarmed. He had never mentioned being injured so badly or being swamped so hard.

There was a glazed look for a moment as if Sora was remembering. "Not like this. A lot sometimes, and some pretty bad fights, but never so many in such a small space."

Riku was ominously silent at this revelation and she could see his grip on Sora tightening right before he jerked the boy even closer. Kairi echoed Sora's yelp as the brunet fell into them. Riku didn't seem to care as he asked, "Why didn't you ever mention this before?"

"I forgot," Sora shrugged and Kairi heard Riku groan in disgust. Defensively Sora continued, "Well, it was a long time ago and since he warned me, I just accepted it as part of... all this."

He gestured to himself – or tried. Thanks to Riku have jerked him half into their laps he was more gesturing at all of them – but Kairi found that fitting as well. She smiled and shook her head at both boys. Sora squirmed to put distance between them, stopping when Riku scowled. She could almost see the word "overprotectice" running through Sora's thoughts. And it was true – Riku was overprotective of both of them and right after they had been injured he was the worst.

"We should leave before it happens again," Sora suggested when it became clear Riku didn't really want to let either of them go very far. He relaxed into them and Kairi felt Riku do the same, his grip loosening until he was only loosely embracing them both. It was a rare occurence even in his overprotective moods. Kairi couldn't blame him considering how many disasters had followed each other in the past few days.

"Sure," Riku agreed. None of them moved.

Sora frowned as he tilted his head, staring at something. "Are either of you two hurt?"

She looked at him blankly, but he was staring at Riku, who looked just as blank. Sora gestured to some blood on his vest. Riku stared at it and then shook his head. "It's yours."

"Oh." Sora briefly inspected himself and then shrugged. "Doesn't look like it was too bad."

Riku twitched and Kairi had to wince. Sora's definition of "too bad" was far from theirs. However, upon seeing Riku's dark expressions she hurriedly stood, dislodging both boys, and exclaimed, "Let's get back to work! The faster we leave the sooner Atlantis is in less danger."

Reluctantly, both got up to follow and she smiled, making her way back to the city. It was best to head off any arguments about injuries. Those went on forever – because they could have been dying and either of the boys probably would have dismissed their own injuries out of hand. Even during a battle they might ignore each others. But after a battle, she didn't want to be any where near them if one had any major injury. Her boys could scold each other almost as well as she could – though a bit more insulting than she was.

* * *

End Chapter Twelve. 

Sorry for a long time between updates guys, but November and December are hard times at college, especially when for half the month of November I had roommate issues. The next world is funny.


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything Disney.

* * *

Chapter 13 –

Anti-Form. Kairi's Keyblade. Them having to keep moving incase of Heartless attacks. Riku wasn't sleeping very well thanks to all the thoughts running through his head. He had one arm wrapped around Sora and another in the brunet's spikes as he waited for morning. As it had turned out, the floating heads on Atlantis had been the way to open a new path. Somehow, he hadn't been surprised. Sora had discovered it first again – the next time, he hoped he could try. He was curious to see if Slender Thorn could do the same as Ultima. They had different basic designs.

And there was Radiant Spirit – but despite having it in her hand when Sora unlocked the new path, she still heard nothing. And she still couldn't call it without his help. He had to summon it for her. He sighed and shifted his hand in the brunet's hair to above his boyfriend's head altogether. It was a surprise when another hand came up to tangle in his. "Can't sleep?"

He scolded himself for waking Sora even as he replied, "Just thinking. Go back to sleep."

"'bout what?" Sora murmured sleepily, apparently ignoring his order.

"Everything, really. There's a lot to think about," he whispered. Sora snorted and raised his head. Riku was suddenly staring into blue eyes that were more aware than anyone had the right to be after just waking up. But both of them had experiences that made them want to wake up quickly.

He felt his hand squeezed gently before Sora said, "It's nothing that can't wait until morning. You don't need to keep watch on the gummi ship. We all need sleep before we get to the next world."

"I think you should both get to sleep before I kick you out," Kairi grumbled from behind him. Riku turned slightly and felt Sora shifting to sit up enough to see the girl. She was glaring at them both, her hair askew and her pajamas wrinkled. "Sleep."

Riku decided he felt sleepy after all when she glared at them and quickly he shut his eyes. Sora chuckled quietly before the boy settled down. Riku half expected him to shift out of his grasp to make himself more comfortable, but instead the boy sprawled out closer, half of their limbs entangled. He wasn't sure if this was because Sora felt more comfortable like that, or if it was to make sure he didn't move until morning.

Either way, it worked. Riku felt his thoughts escaping him and sleep came to claim him.

* * *

Having Riku and Sora alone in the cockpit wasn't the best idea, Riku decided. There was a high chance that they were going to break something. They had set it on autopilot a while ago when it became clear neither of them was paying attention to the route. As long as the attacks didn't get too bad the auto targeting could handle it as well.

Slender Thorn had caused the deep marks in the door. Ultima's magic had scorched the walls. At the moment, Riku was thinking furiously about how to get Ultima's point away from his neck. His wrist holding Slender thorn was being gripped tightly, pinned against the wall and Sora was grinning up at him. He was effectively defeated, he just refused to admit it.

He formed a dark aura in his free hand, and then hesitated. They were nearly at the new world and his magic didn't regenerate as fast as Sora's. He groaned in frustration, his breathing coming hard. At least he could say he had given Sora a work out. The shorter boy was flushed from exertion and panting hard.

He blinked and had to look again as he realized Sora's eyes had a mischievous look that he recognized well. He could only blink as Ultima disappeared and Sora closed the small distance still between them, leaning up at the same time. Riku welcomed the new turn their spar had taken and let Slender Thorn fade away. Sora kept a grip on his wrist despite that fact and he could still feel a bit of that competitive spark. He pushed back, grinning against Sora's mouth as he made them stumble away from the wall.

He almost managed to pin the boy to the opposite wall but at the last moment Sora was pushing him back against the controls. A countermove was impossible when Sora began nipping at his neck and his only triumph was that he didn't do more than let out a muffled groan when the boy added a knee between his legs to the formula.

Each caress he returned with equal fervor. Each touch of Sora's hands and mouth was a reminder that he was still alive. He hadn't lost either of his friends, despite how Sora had looked when they found him on Atlantis. Knowing the panic he felt then, he pushed those thoughts away, focusing on Sora and the present, letting himself get lost in the moment.

He remembered why that was a bad idea when the door opened and both of them had loose clothing. Actually, Sora had loose clothing, thanks to his outfit. Riku's own outfit was much easier to take apart, with only one zipper to contend with and a vest to slip off. Both of them jumped as the door slid open and Riku's hand slipped to land a glancing blow on a button. He didn't dare look at the control, too busy gaping at a red faced Kairi in the doorway.

"Oh.. I, um, didn't mean to interrupt..." She trailed off, staring at them with a strange expression on her face – right before the transport circle began to glow. Riku realized which control he had hit too late as Kairi vanished.

Now that he had been alerted to it, he could see the new world that had just appeared. He was at the wrong angle to see much of it but he had the impression of trees. More important was that Kairi had disappeared. Sora reacted first, jostling him accidentally when the brunet lunged for the transport circle. Bad luck had Riku gripping the gummi console for balance, his fingers brushing against multiple controls.

"Sora! Stop!" He ordered sharply, knowing with their luck he had probably hit the transport beam button again. Sora paused – right as he stepped into the transport circle. "Get out of there!"

"Riku, Kairi is... Oh." Sora blinked as the green light shot up and flared brightly. When it faded, there was no Sora and Riku glared at the gummi ship accusingly. Something always had to go wrong. And now Kairi and Sora were down there without him – which never went well. Neither of them were cautious enough and even now tended to trust the first people they came across.

Quickly Riku zipped his shirt back up and put his vest back on. He glanced at the panels and buttons behind him and stared at the whirling numbers. There were five places the transport beam could have brought them – and the button choosing them was stuck down. They could have gone anywhere. He narrowed his eyes and kicked the controls swiftly. Mostly this was an act of wrath but it had the added bonus of having the button pop up and unstick.

The one it had chosen was as good as any and Riku slammed his fist into the button activating the transport one more time and ran to the green circle. He summoned Slender Thorn as the green light encircled him – and found it in his mouth when it faded.

_'You've_got_ to be kidding me.'_ He thought furiously as he stared around. It was dark out. He was much higher off the ground than when he was a lion, and his head felt a bit top heavy. He didn't move a muscle, remembering his lesson from the Pride Lands. Carefully he turned his head and looked at his pale body.

"Great. Just great," He muttered around the Keyblade. He let Slender Thorn fade. Four legs, with hooves at the end. His tail flicked upward into a small triangle. He could see an even paler color on the other side. Probably white to his present silver state. He was a deer. A silver deer. He couldn't have ended up as a wolf or something. He had to end up as a deer.

Unfortunately, besides being a deer there was also the small fact that neither Sora nor Kairi were in view. There was nothing to it but to go look for them. It couldn't be that much different than a lion's body. He was still walking on four legs.

He took one careful step, and then another. So far, it had gone well. His confidence growing, he began to trot out – and promptly fell. His head managed to get itself stuck in the dirt when he tumbled down and he could now barely see the edge of what must have been a small set of antlers. One hoof was placed in front, the other beside his head and he pushed. His head lifted from the ground in a shower of dirt.

Once again he tried it, walking in a slow circle, and then more quickly. After that, he tried something else – he bounded forward. He found he could run as well, but bounding as a deer was a new experience and with no one watching he quickly took to it, pleased with the results. If he had to be stuck in this body, at least it could move quickly. No sharp teeth or claws, but the antlers would have to do – besides, Slender Thorn was more than enough protection.

Now he just had to find his friends.

He figured the best thing to do was find a native and ask where the trouble was. Chances were they would be in the thick of it.

* * *

Sometimes even he hated being right. He would have recognized the scream he heard sometime later anywhere. "Kairi!" He called, running in her direction. She sounded as much angry as scared, but she was probably in danger.

Oddly, the danger wasn't Heartless. Instead there was a male deer barreling down on her. By the blood on his haunches and side, she had already done quite a number on him. Riku felt his head lower almost on its own accord, some instinct that came with the body telling him what to do. It was unfortunate he wasn't as quiet as most deer. His hooves cracked on many of the leaves in his path and the deer's head swiveled in his direction.

They met with a crash and Riku automatically braced himself. He was smaller than the other deer, and with less prongs on his antlers, but he knew his strength was probably greater if it transferred from his human self. Yet, despite his confidence, the other male managed to stay on its feet and shove him aside to score a hit on his shoulder.

"Stay out of this," The other deer barked, his eyes narrowed. Riku said nothing, instead letting Slender Thorn to the talking. The other deer actually gaped as the Keyblade slammed into his head.

"Run," Riku snarled, and was surprised at how obedient the deer seemed to be. It was a little disappointing. That was the first action he had seen in the last few hours.

"Where's Sora?" Kairi asked after a moment as they contemplated each other. She was very red, with pale pink at her throat, belly, and the underside of her tail. Neither of them blended into the fall landscape.

Riku shifted a bit uneasily. "There was a problem with the gummi transport beam. I don't know where he is."

"Oh," She replied, seemingly lost for words. Riku distinctly remembered the scene she had walked into and decided they should be moving on.

"We should look for him." There was a feeling of anxiety in him that had nothing to do with his natural instincts.

"I think deer hide later in the day. It's almost daylight." Kairi was looking at the sky, which was lightening. He didn't mind the time at dawn, but he had a feeling she was right. Something in his gut told him deer shouldn't walk around in the daytime.

He dug at the ground with one hoof, staring off moodily. "Which direction did you come from?"

"That way," She said, her head moving to point toward the west. He sighed and nosed her shoulder gently.

"We'll go to the east until it's too light out. Sora can't be too far." He began to walk, working on making his steps silent. Kairi fell into step beside him and he watched her walk, frowning at her delicate steps, and already more silent than his. He didn't understand. It had been the same in Pride Lands. Kairi had taken to her lion body much quicker than he had. He was better in the end, but she moved like she belonged. He didn't get it.

Dawn came too fast for his liking and the sun was shining brightly and it was nearly noon when Riku finally admitted they weren't going to find Sora like this. If the boy had a drop of common sense he would find his own place to spend midday.

Which meant he would probably be getting in trouble the whole day. Sora and common sense only had a very loose and distant relationship. He turned to Kairi, who was shying nervously at every sound – like a real deer would in daytime, he supposed. "Let's find a place to sleep."

* * *

"Why was that deer attacking you anyway?" It occurred to Riku to ask after they had awoken. It was still a bit too light out for either of them to be comfortable so they stood and waited. Riku's stomach was growling for food but he refused to eat the grass just yet. There had to be another choice.

Kairi was chewing on brown, dying grass as he asked the question and she looked distinctly uncomfortable. "I, um, attacked him. He wanted to... Well, it's... He doesn't have a mate, I guess."

It took a moment for the implications to set in and when they did Riku growled and pawed at the earth. "I'll kill him."

"Don't. He didn't know I wasn't a real deer. Leave it be." Kairi's pleading eyes made him want to agree. He forced his gaze away, staying silent. If he saw that deer again, he would make sure he regretted ever seeing Kairi.

"Riku-" Whatever Kairi was going to say was lost at the sudden crashing around them, and the deep laughter of two males. Riku's ears swiveled to catch the familiar sounds of one and he bounded out of the thicket to see a dark male deer, smaller and with one less prong on his antlers, chasing a lighter male who had equal Riku's number.

The darker one had blue eyes, and there was a crown necklace around his neck. "Sora!"

The sharp call had both of them pausing and Sora immediately was bounding over to him. "Riku! Look who I found!"

Thee older boy cocked his head, his round eyes narrowing at the newcomer. He didn't recognize him. The other deer looked surprised by his suspicion and stepped forward carefully. "Sora, didn't you fight him?"

"Yeah, but we fixed it," Sora explained – or didn't explain, really. "Bambi, this is Riku. Riku, this is Bambi. His world was originally destroyed and he helped me fight as a fawn."

"And now I get to return the debt I owe you for restoring my world. I can actually fight now, instead of just giving you things." The deer snorted, obviously talking about something that Riku didn't understand. But Sora nudged his shoulder, scoffing gently.

Riku eyed the male deer and reluctantly decided that a local guide wouldn't hurt, but Sora shouldn't just be letting other people fight with them and get hurt. He had noticed that the boy had fought besides locals before, but still – he didn't need another fighter with him and Kairi there.

"Besides, the Heartless recently began getting stronger. You can lock my world, can't you Sora?" The deer looked worried now, his orange eyes almost pleading as he looked at the brown deer. Riku shifted impatiently. Of course they could lock the world, and find the way to open the paths. But Sora was looking worried now.

"Is it unlocked? They should all be locked because when I locked Kingdom Hearts they should have been separated." Riku frowned. Sora was right, but... the worlds had been unlocked before. Except for it to happen so fast – Riku preferred to believe that the doors were still locked. It hadn't even been three years. Something else was going on.

"I don't know. But the Heartless are becoming more aggressive, and the population exploded near the season's passing. And these white things began to appear as well... Geno and Gurri can't protect themselves and Faline and I can't be there all the time, especially not with them wandering off sometimes." Bambi's ears were flat suddenly, but Riku had no idea who Geno and Gurri were.

Kairi fixed that problem. "Are Geno and Gurri your children?"

He couldn't help feeling surprised though he kept it from showing. Bambi didn't look like he was much past their age – or the equivalent of their age. But Bambi responded positively and even started chattering about them excitedly, seeming to forget he didn't know them except through Sora. Riku removed himself from the conversation by moving a few paces away and staring out into the forest. He didn't have to wait long.

There was a nuzzle to his cheek and the brush of small antlers. He turned his head and touched noses with Sora. He wished he had hands so he could at least touch him for real, and make sure he was real. Every time he thought of Atlantis and what had nearly happened to Kairi and Sora – if he had been a few seconds later with Kairi, he didn't even know what would have happened. And with Sora – he had been badly injured. Riku didn't trust the soldiers not to finish him off. And he didn't quite believe Sora when he was assured he would have been fine anyway. Sora had never really been alone for very long. Donald and Goofy had always been close by – Sora didn't really know what it would take to have him dying.

Riku was sure they had been much closer to losing the Keyblade Master than either Sora or Kairi believed.

"Anything interesting happen?" Sora asked, moving so their sides brushed as they breathed. The younger boy moved his face, his eyes scanning their surroundings. Riku didn't think he even realized he was doing it – it had become automatic for both of them.

"One of the natives decided Kairi would make a nice wi- mate. I ran him off," He answered evenly, barely suppressed rage in his voice. If he had only known what that deer had been trying to do, he wouldn't have told it to run.

Sora's gaze flickered to Kairi before returning to him. "Know where he went?"

"No. We traveled too far away from where I found her. He could be anywhere." Riku had the itch to run back and try and find him anyway – and perhaps once he would have done just that. But he wasn't going to leave them alone now.

They were interrupted when Bambi bounded over, grinning at them. "C'mon! Let's go see Faline and the fawns! Your friend Kairi said she wants to meet them!"

"Sure!" Sora chirped before Riku could reject the invitation. Suddenly, with two pairs of blue eyes on him, he had to at least nod his head in acquiescence. He wondered if there was anyone in all the worlds who could really resist a request from both Sora and Kairi. Someone would have to be evil to do that.

* * *

Geno and Gurri had been "adorable" according to Kairi. Riku had just looked at them skeptically – but it had been nice to see Kairi and Sora playing with the children – until the female fawn had decided it would be fun to involved him in the play and he had danced back, trying to avoid stepping on the flailing limbs of the two small fawns – he didn't even realize there was any mischief going on until he saw the twinkle in Kairi's eyes. It was too late though, he tripped backwards into a pond – over Sora, who had lain down behind him.

Now he was busy chasing his two friends across a field. It was late afternoon and his instincts told him it was a good time to be out, so the three of them had left Bambi behind to watch them bemusedly as they darted across the field. "Come back here, you cowards!"

"What, can't you go any faster than that, Riku?" Sora teased as he sprinted by right behind him. Riku turned to lunge after him – and Kairi bolted out of the bushes and past him. Realizing he had been fooled, Riku bounded after Sora, the long dying grass tickling his underside.

Just as he was sure he would have the lighter, swifter deer in his grasp, familiar dark portals opened. Dusks flew out to surround them, along with unfamiliar four legged wolf-shaped Nobodies. Sora muttered, "Oh great," and then they were off.

Bambi did join in, and turned out to be a bigger help than Riku would have suspected. His antlers send the wolf-like Nobodies flying as the three of them attacked with Keyblades – Riku had thrown Radiant Spirit to Kairi.

It wasn't a long fight. Riku had a feeling it was a test, or a scouting party of some sort. The wolf-like Nobodies did the most damage, their teeth ripping chunks out of his shoulder. They were fast as well, sometimes making dashes beneath them – and jumping upward, claws and teeth mauling at him.

His bellow of pain was entirely like a deer's, but rearing was the wrong thing to do because a pack of the wolf Nobodies lunged at him. He was sure if there had been more enemies he would have been in a bad spot. But Bambi ran through them, tossing them away from him. Kairi was there a second later, a few Light Flares separating the enemies.

Riku stumbled to his feet and despite the injuries to his haunches and belly he looked for more enemies – but they were gone. All dead. It really had been a short fight, but he knew all the enemies hadn't been around him. His aqua eyes glanced around and found that most of the orbs of magical enemies that hadn't been dropped around him led right up to where Sora stood, breathing lightly, his eyes steely.

"Sora?" Riku asked, puzzled by the look on the younger deer's face. There was rage in his expression, and he didn't think it had to do with him.

"They spoke to me!" Sora growled, sounding outraged. "The Nobodies! They spoke to me!"

He looked at Riku then and suddenly the rage vanished. "Are you alright?"

Riku gave him an annoyed look. "No, Sora. I've lived through nearly three years of this, the fight with Xemnas, but a few new wolf things are going to kill me. Of course I'm alright."

Sora jerked his head back a bit and then huffed. "Well excuse me for worrying."

Loftily, Riku answered, "You're excused."

There was a moment, and Riku almost thought the boy wouldn't go for it – but then Curaga's green light washed over them all, followed immediately by Sora lunging for him. Their antler's clashed together before Riku even realized he had moved his head. This time he found it was more fun. "Think you can beat me, Sora?"

Cockily, he was answered with, "Think I _can't_?"

"I_know_ you can't," Riku retorted, and shoved his weight against the smaller deer. Surprisingly, Sora let him, and then a moment later he realized why as he slid right past. The brunet has sidestepped!

He didn't have enough time to recover before the other boy was on him. Instead of meeting him with antlers, his smaller body was just flung onto his silver one and Riku stumbled. Mock growling, Sora bit his ear and Riku blinked in shock. Then he bucked and Sora laughed, jumping away. "Come on, Riku. Surely you can do better than that."

Riku kicked with one back leg and was gifted with a yelp. Then he turned, rearing, legs ready. Sora was there to meet him. Not quite as tall, but the two clashed their antlers lightly together anyway. Both were careful to make their blows soft.

"What are you doing?" Bambi asked as they fell back, and Riku paused, cocking his head at the other male.

"They're playing. They do that," Kairi said, giggling. Sora snorted and trotted over to her, nudging her enough to make her stumble.

"We're training," Sora corrected loftily. It was Riku's turn to snort incredulously and he took a few running steps, tossing his antlers.

"I'll race you back to the fawns," He taunted, and then they ran. He suddenly got what Kairi and Sora did in new forms – they just didn't think about it. They were deer. He was a deer right now, racing other deer, others of his family. He liked thinking about them like that. They were his family.

Deer, he decided, thought in more simplistic terms than he was used to. It probably wasn't a big change for Sora.

Geno was waiting at the edge of Faline's thicket, apparently trying to act as he thought he should and standing guard. The fawn puffed himself up as Riku approached and demanded, "State your name and business."

"Move it, squirt, I'm trying to win a race here," Riku called. Geno seemed to decide this was a good business to be in because he quickly moved aside – just as Sora bounded past.

"Ha! Who's the best now Riku?" Sora taunted and Riku snorted.

"Definitely not you. I saw how clumsy that entrance was. Can't you do anything with grace, Sora?" He criticized and watched Sora opened his mouth and gape at him a moment. Feeling smug he turned around to greet Kairi.

He didn't expect Sora to continue it. "After we're back on the ship, I'll show you exactly what I can do gracefully," The other boy purred, and Riku froze, forcing himself not to turn and stare. It wasn't often he heard Sora use that voice and he cursed his lack of a normal form.

Bambi, who had come up just in time to hear that comment looked at them both and tilted his head. "What does that mean?"

"It means Sora's going to show Riku a few tricks," Kairi commented slyly. Riku almost choked – but Sora laughed from behind him and he had to smile, glad he couldn't blush in this form.

"Geno, where's your mother?" Bambi asked suddenly and Riku blinked, realizing there was an absence of the two female deer in the thicket. All of them looked around and Geno turned slightly, the male fawn glancing around a bit worriedly.

"Gurri disappeared and Mother went to find her. She told me to stay here." By the time Geno had reached the end of his sentence Riku had begun staring around, his ears swiveling around. It didn't take that long to realize Faline wasn't nearby and to his nose, there was a faint smell of darkness.

"Heartless were here," He stated, his voice low and quiet.

"Can you follow them?" Kairi asked, stepping closer and nosing the foliage of one bush. There was a small patch of fur caught on it – Gurri's fur. Riku gazed in that direction but he didn't voice his thoughts. The two had either been captured – or they were Heartless. He had little hope in his heart that they were in good health either way. And he couldn't follow them. The scent would fade in one way or another. Either from time or because the Heartless had gone.

"I can try," he said instead and started forward. Sora caught his eyes before he could turn his head and he saw the boy's head jerk back. He knew he was lying – but he had to try. He expected to be ratted out. Yet, Sora stayed quiet and fell into step behind him. He felt oddly guilty – Sora didn't like keeping secrets, even his own. But at least it was only a small lie. And there were other ways of tracking then by the scent of darkness. He just didn't know how to do those.

The scent was fading fast and his heart sunk as he continued on. Then Sora nudged his shoulder and whispered, "Head left a little. See how the grass is just a little flat? And up there it looks like something fell and was dragged."

Riku blinked but did stare obediently – and found that it was true. He gave his boyfriend and odd look. He would definitely have him explain that later – they weren't noticeable things. Riku had to look hard to see them since the grass was already recovering. Yet, Sora had seen it.

He reached the spot that Sora had indicated and stared. Something had been dragged here. But just one something. "I think they took Faline."

"What about Gurri?" Bambi questioned, but Riku had to shake his head.

"There's no sign of her," He said heavily.

"Maybe she got away then!" Kairi suggested brightly. It was forced, but he hoped Bambi wouldn't notice it. By the way the older male seemed to straighten up and smiled at her, he hadn't.

"My Gurri is smart," Bambi said with fatherly pride. From behind them, Geno snorted, obviously disagreeing.

Sora shouldered past them both. "Come on guys, we can't stay here forever!" And then he was bounding forward, following the trail effortlessly. Riku quelled the sudden jealousy and sprang after him. He let Bambi take the back with Geno, and nudged Kairi to run between him and Sora. There was only enough room on the trail the Heartless had made for them to go single file.

The trail suddenly opened into a open field, and a rock stood in the middle. Sora bound in, ignoring the danger, but Riku and Kairi both stopped. Riku because of his natural caution, and he guessed Kairi was listening to the deer instincts. Sora was ignoring his. It took him a moment to realize why.

There was a deer – or something that looked like a deer – walking up to stand on the rock. Sora was lunging straight up toward it. Through the long grass, Riku could see the wolf like Nobodies converging on the younger boy and he tried to plunge into the field – but the sudden blur of red in front of him stopped him mid-stride. "Wait, Riku. Trust him."

He stared in shock. Trust him? Of course he trusted Sora. But Sora had just gone out without even a second look. He couldn't have a plan. Sora never had a plan. Things just ended up working out well for him. That was what Riku didn't trust. He didn't trust that Sora's luck would hold out forever.

"Where are Faline and Gurri?" Sora demanded, apparently still unaware of the wolf-Nobodies, Riku's muscles tensed as the wolves stopped – but they didn't jump for Sora. They stayed where they were, hidden in the grass.

"Not here. I wouldn't know where they are, really. I had some Heartless chase them in the opposite direction and led you here by manipulating the smells. I knew one of your friends would at least lead you to where I set up the rest of the trail. Yet, I see them not. Lose track of them, Keyblade Master?" The Nobody was mocking them. Orange eyes peered out from the pale purple fur. The antlers on his head looked even sharper than a normal deer's. And there was something else odd about the Nobody.

"We split up," Sora replied without hesitation. Riku forced himself to stay still at the announcement. What was he doing? The Nobody wouldn't believe that.

"Of course. The wielder of Way to the Dawn would have gone one way and protected the Princess, and your deer friend and his son another. You of course, would need no one to protect you or back you up, correct? How astonishingly arrogant... But correct. The others are nothing compared to you, Keyblade Master." There was feverish excitement in the Nobody's voice and Riku wanted to bolt out there and herd Sora and all of them away. He didn't like that tone of voice at all.

Sora took another step closer, his head tilted and uncertainty laced in his voice. "What do you mean? Riku's a Keyblade Master as well."

"True. But there are differences. And neither he nor your Princess will... do what we want. They are extras, so to speak. We would like to see them dead, really." Riku saw Sora stiffen and the Keyblade appeared in the brunet's mouth. The Nobody crept forward on his rock and shook his head. "None of that, now. If you really want to save them, we can always make a deal."

There was a pause and Sora stayed silent. Then he asked with a curiosity Riku hoped was faked, "What kind of deal?"

"Come with me. And I and all of the Nobodies under my and my compatriots' command will leave your friends alone. Come with me, and have a chance to make your world exist again. We will never bother you again. You won't be harmed, and neither will they." It would have been so easy to say yes. Riku knew he would have been greatly tempted – and he couldn't be sure Sora wasn't either.

"No." It was short, and firm, and Riku was surprised – and glad. The deal was a trap. It had to be a trap. Or they would backstab him. It didn't matter – Sora just couldn't go with them. "Faline and Gurri are in trouble. What about them?"

"Trust him," Kairi murmured again when he felt himself shake slightly in anger. Sora couldn't actually be thinking of accepting their offer.

"The Heartless dragged them off. Probably there hearts were taken. I apologize, however, what are two deer compared to your home?" The Nobody grinned, and Riku squinted. There was something odd about his mouth. Sora stiffened at the sight and Riku ground his teeth. He wished he was closer.

"No. You called those Heartless onto my friends. I don't trust you. You would just do the same – you said nothing about Heartless. You'll stab me in the back the second you get the chance!" Sora cried, and turned away, bounding back toward them. Riku grinned and bounded forward to guard his back – and hit a barrier.

"No!" He howled as Sora skidded to stop, just short of the shining wall. He slammed Slender Thorn against it, knowing in his heart it was useless. Sora stared at him for a moment, and then with a cry of anger and frustration he threw Ultima at the barrier. It ricocheted off and into the air, disappearing when Sora called it back.

Sora whirled away from him. "You never meant to keep your word at all! This was just a big set up."

"On the contrary, I meant every word. You however, have been lying." The Nobody was gazing straight past Sora and Riku bristled as that orange gaze landed on him. "Those are certainly your friends back there – though I see Way to the Dawn has been upgraded. Interesting. We had not been informed of this. Still, it doesn't matter to me whether you come willingly. This just means we get you – and we get to kill your friends."

"Go find Gurri and Faline. They could still be alive," Sora urged, apparently not paying attention to the Nobody behind him at all. "You can't do anything here."

"I won't leave you here," Riku ground out, and reared up, slamming his whole body against the barrier. It crackled with painful energy and he gave a short pained yell before he fell. He could hear Sora trying to argue with him, trying to order him away. He stood up, braced his legs, and lunged at the barrier, forcing his antlers toward it. This time he was pushed away forcefully and Kairi managed to put herself between him and the barrier – and Sora, beyond it.

She helped him up, but was carefully keeping in his way. "You can't get through. We've tried before. Saïx, Xemnas... He's fought alone without us before and you trying to break through never works. If Faline and Gurri die and there was something we could have done to stop it... Bambi's already moving. Sora can fight. They can't."

She left, bounding after Bambi, and Riku quivered with indecision. Sora was facing away from him now, reared up over a pack of Nobody wolves, Ultima flashing down. Riku watched another moment – and then bolted away. He couldn't stand there and watched. He had to do something useful – and just maybe if they did find Faline and Gurri, and they weren't Heartless, he could rush back. There had to be a way to break through. Even if Sora could probably handle it, there was always a chance something could go wrong, something that Riku could have prevented.

But really, Kairi was right, and he knew it. He wanted Sora to need him, but Sora had told him to go. Sora could use his help – but he didn't need it. He didn't need him.

* * *

End Chapter 13. 

Aw, Riku's angsting and Sora's not there to get him out of it. Yet. But he won't allow that for long once he catches scent of it... and, you know, isn't stuck behind a barrier. But hey, plot revelations! Also, the fawn names came from the second Bambi book, _Bambi's Children_. I figured if Disney had ever made a movie about the kids they would have used the same name as the author of the book about them, so I just transferred them over to the Disney version of themselves. Feedback is always welcomed!


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything Disney.

* * *

Chapter 14

Sora watched Riku go from the corner of his eye and tore into the next Nobody that came within striking distance savagely. Once his friends had disappeared the few Nobody wolves had backed off and stood in the grass in a loose circle around him. Their master was laughing.

"You really think you can do anything? Or that they will get away. My servants possess the same talent as I do – the power of scent. Not to the same degree, but they could follow your friends across whole worlds, and even if you somehow do manage to defeat me... There will always be more of them." The Nobody was more crouched now and Sora shivered just the slightest bit. It didn't show, but he still felt like a baby for shivering. It was just... the Nobody was _creepy_. He looked like a deer from far away but from this close Sora could see that his legs ended in claws instead of hooves and his teeth were sharp like a carnivore's. Never mind his antlers were sharper than the admittedly few deer he had seen.

_'But he hasn't done much yet. Just talked.' _Somehow, Sora didn't think this was meant to be reassuring. It was confirmed when Roxas added,_'Saïx and Xemnas liked to talk to their prey before they killed them.'_

Sora remembered Saïx as a man who had liked to play games with him mentally and had mocked him with his knowledge of Kairi and Riku. Roxas remembered him as the cold gazed man who had shown him within days of being in the Organization that he was not to be trifled with. Roxas had used his defeat then as fuel to drive him to get stronger. Neither of them remembered the mind games he had played with any fondness and felt a new hatred for this Nobody kindled.

"We'll get by," Sora spat, tensing as the Nobody tensed and sprang off of the rock. The pale purple creature landed lightly and glided toward him.

"I'm afraid there will be no 'we'. I will take you now, Sora. It would be better if you came willingly – I still offer the chance for you to get your world back. You're coming for us eventually anyway, aren't you?" It was tempting. It was very tempting – but he knew better than to try it alone. He had lost his friends once; he wouldn't do it willingly again. He lowered his head.

"On my own terms, not on yours," He retorted angrily and launched himself toward the Nobody, not knowing why he used his antlers. It was instinctive – but apparently it was the same for the Nobody, who lowered his to meet the charge. At the last second Sora saw how focused this left the other – and swung the Keyblade down and under. His haunches skidded to a stop and he threw his weight to a different direction and the Keyblade slammed into the Nobody's throat.

His enemy stumbled away, choking, and jumped backward as he tried to follow up on the attack. "Good show, Sora. Before we begin, I offer you a name. Alcexan. Mine, of course. Remember it – you'll be hearing enough of it when I bring you in. They'll be singing my – " Whatever he was about to say was cut off when Sora threw the Keyblade at him. He hadn't expected it to actually hit, but it even sliced open the Nobody's muzzle.

The attitude of his opponent changed, and the orange eyes narrowed. "Fine then," Alcexan hissed. "They won't mind a few injuries."

It was the only warning Sora had before the Nobody was on him. Not just Alcexan, but all of the wolf Nobodies that had been nearby sprang for him. He kicked his back hooves in a natural reaction and swung his Keyblade to meet as many as he could – but the larger, and somehow faster Nobody was behind him, claws tearing at his back legs.

He pointed the Keyblade up and used the first spell that came to mind. "Earthquake!"

_'Thank you, Riku,'_ Roxas muttered fervently as Sora sprang away from where the Earth spell was bringing spires of rock out of the ground to beat at the Nobodies. Sora grinned. "Never thought I'd be thanking him more for a book than a skateboard."

_'The skateboard is still better,'_ Roxas quickly added, but Sora didn't believe him. The Earth spell was still weak compared to his others, but considering they were in a forest he thought it would be the best one to use. It hadn't stopped them for long and Sora crouched low in the tall grass, his focus on Alcexan. For his first attack to have worked, he had either really surprised the Nobody, or the Nobody had been faking. Either way, the deer look alike was ready for him now, and was fast on his feet. Sora was small, and perhaps more agile – but Sora wasn't going to depend on it.

He had to think about it this time, and desperately wondered how Riku would have gone about it. He usually just threw himself into things and came out on top – but this was a Nobody and its servants all coming for him, and he was all alone. The wounds bleeding on his back and legs were testament enough that his usual running in and smashing at things wasn't going to do it. Roxas snorted. _'Stop doubting yourself. You fought plenty of battles without your friends. Thousands of Heartless, Nobodies, and the Organization. You're over thinking this.'_

Sora flushed inwardly – a deer's skin didn't blush well – but knew Roxas was right. He threw himself back into the battle.

'You shouldn't fight us.' One of the wolves whispered to him – except it wasn't normal. He was feeling the words more than hearing them. He shuddered away from it, and felt Roxas jerk in surprise. It had happened again.

"I'll fight whoever I want," He yelled and kicked at the wolves while slashing the Keyblade at Alcexan, who nimbly jumped back and looked at him in evident surprise. One hoof hit the wolf Nobody directly in the middle of it's pale chest, where its' Nobody symbol lay – and the wolf's head snapped down onto his leg.

He felt an instant of panic as he was dragged down and they were on him. He struggled up with Keyblade and antlers – and fell down again when Alcexan rammed into him. The heavier body of the male held him down and fangs closed around his throat. He froze, his eyes spotting the creature. It had no fur, unlike a real wolf, just smooth gray skin – or clothing, he couldn't decide. It wasn't something he should be contemplating as he was held at bay, either.

The purple Nobody grinned, moving his head so their eyes met. "So, we should have a nice little chat. There are so many things I should ask you. Like why you can hear them speak – perhaps that Nobody of yours left you with some of his abilities. Interesting, but really, there would have to be some darkness in you on your own to hear it. I wonder."

The Nobody's gaze drifted off and Sora stared incredulously, Keyblade held tight in his mouth. Carefully he looked at the positions of the Nobodies around him. Alcexan had already said he didn't want him dead – and that meant he had some time, Then the larger Nobody snapped his gaze back to Sora. "But we should discuss this back at the place I and my comrades have made into our home, don't you think?"

The dark portal began to open beneath them – and Sora stopped thinking and reacted. From the sky, thunder cracked and lightning came down around them, Thundaga making some of the wolves scream and vanish. Alcexan screeched in rage. "My servants!"

Sora sprang to his feet. "I'm not going anywhere with you."

"You_brat_!" Alcexan hissed and his sharp antlers met with Sora's Keyblade, the two clashing together. Sora pushed the Nobody back – and swung Ultima right after. He couldn't let the Nobody dodge again. Ultima hit every time, the Nobody only able to deflect the blows part way – and for one last strike in the set, he reared up and came down hard. Ultima bit in deeper than he expected. When he backed off, Alcexan was staring at him out of one orange eye – and the other was gone. All that was left was a gash, bleeding out with trickling down his neck.

"My eye," Alcexan muttered, his voice out of focus. Then like something snapped in the Nobody and with a roar the creature jumped forward. "I'll kill you!"

Sora tensed and stood ready, a Firaga spell readying in his mind. But a new voice interrupted. "I think not. Return, Alcexan!"

The Nobody snarled in resistance – and the voice ordered from behind, "Later, Alcexan. There is a time and a place. Do you want to reclaim your true name and wear it properly?"

That seemed to have an effect, the pale purple Nobody backing away slightly, but Sora didn't dare turn away. He wanted to know who this new voice was that had power over his enemy – their boss? But Alcexan was still glaring at him. A dark portal opened behind the creature and the Nobody gave one last snarl before bounding through.

Immediately Sora pivoted around and sprang toward where the voice had been. But he only saw a disappearing dark portal with a humanoid figure in it. There was a glimpse of green eyes and dark hair and he caught the impression of what could almost have been a friendly smile – and then there was nothing.

_'Interesting. Alcexan didn't want to obey – but he did anyway. I wonder. This is different – we needed a Keyblade Master to release hearts. Me or you – it didn't really matter. But them... they don't care about the hearts. Riku would be just as useful there,'_ Roxas mused. Sora shrugged, not really knowing what to think about it – and he wanted to find his friends anyway. His hooves scraped at the ground as he bounded silently back into the forest after his friends.

_'Don't you think you should heal?'_ Roxas suggested. Sora shook his head. "They might be hurt. And our potion supply is... Well... um..."

_'Pretty low and nearing non-existent. I know. And hard to carry in this form as well.' _Sora grimaced, but had to admit it was true.It was harder to heal minor injuries than it had been in the beginning of his journey when he woke up – he wondered if the reason Curaga worked best was because people could and did develop tolerances to Potions and Hi-Potions. It made sense, but also meant he needed a greater supply of Hi-Potions, which were more expensive – and Elixirs... Well, those were hard to buy anywhere. He usually had to find them or make them himself – once in awhile he would find someone who had a couple, but usually some Heartless or Nobody he killed had them. He guessed that came from people they killed or from when they were humans.

It only mattered because it meant he had to heal less – the other two needed them more than he did. He could take a few injuries. Roxas chuckled. _'Riku would say the same about you and Kairi – your clothes just normally would hide your injuries better then his or hers do.'_

He hadn't thought of that – but he would definitely use that in the future to push healing items on them. And his clothes almost fixed themselves. He technically had to hold the sewing needle but the thread had been provided by the fairies one visit, as had the needle, and... Well, he wasn't doing much except moving his hands where the needle guided. He could sew – which he did his best to hide – but not so well that the rips looked as if they never happened. So he could hide past injuries as well, and use Curaga when he wouldn't need magic for a while.

He stopped a moment and lifted his head. Deer didn't have the best noses, but he was pretty sure Riku and Kairi's scent would be the same even as deer and... He had been close enough to both of them that he knew it well. Then he put his nose to the ground. Nothing, as far as he could tell – but he wasn't Riku, either. He didn't have the sense of smell he did.

He would find them eventually – he just had to keep looking.

* * *

In the end, he lay down in a small grove, his legs hurting. Instinctively, he let his tongue bathe the wounds. Roxas snorted._'You might as well use Curaga at this point.'_

"I suppose," He said reluctantly, and cast the spell. It healed most of the injuries, or at least enough that they weren't bleeding or in danger of coming open again with regular movements. Most were healed completely, but he had been hit – or bit, as the case was – good in some spots. Curled up he listened to the sound of a living forest around him. It was midday, and he didn't like the fact he didn't know where his friends were, or that he had just used magic they might need.

Roxas sighed, but could do nothing about it. Sora wouldn't sleep well until he knew where the others were – but he did have to rest and sleep._'Your magic will come back. Slowly, because there aren't enemies about to steal energy from after they die, but it will come back – there's no guarantee they even need that much healing. Sleep, Sora.'_

It was more of a demand than a request, but Sora curled his head down to his knees and closed his eyes. He could at least try. Roxas was satisfied and mentally let himself drift – he needed sleep too.

They awoke to a nose nudging them and a tired but relieved voice saying, "Move over, Sora. Me and Kairi have to sleep too. Knew we'd find you just lazing about."

Still half asleep, it didn't register who it was until he had already shifted to allow Riku to settle more comfortably behind him and Kairi was already burrowing her nose in his shoulder. He was stuck between them, and he could see Bambi blinking at them in surprise – while his mate nudged him and gave the three of them a gentle smile. The two fawns followed in after them, and suddenly deer bodies surrounded Sora. "Wha...?"

"Pure luck," Kairi explained before Riku could get out a word. Sora was glad – Riku probably would have teased him for being asleep. "We came back and found your trail – wasn't hard, this time. You were bleeding."

He blinked, and glanced at the wounds that were still left partially healed. He hadn't realized he had been leaving a trail. He should have healed earlier, it would have been too easy for a predator to find him. "That was it?"

"Well, that and the fact that there was one of those wolf Nobodies on your trail – then we definitely knew it was your blood. Riku killed it, and we found you." She nuzzled his neck, and then she curled her head down. Her voice was muffled as she said, "Now go back to sleep. We all need some."

He obeyed – or at least pretended to. He could feel both of them breathing beside him and he delighted in it. _'You can feel their hearts,'_ Roxas mused. Sora just tried to be as happy as he could, to share it with the Nobody, who sighed in resignation and left his thoughts for later.

He twitched slightly as he felt a new weight over his shoulder and opened his eyes. Riku stared back from an inch away. "Go to_sleep_, Sora. We all need rest and I'm not sleeping until you do."

"Fine, fine," He muttered crossly and closed his eyes again. Riku chuckled and something – presumably Riku's mouth, pulled his ear. He pulled his ear away and retaliated by nipping at his neck. Then he lay his head back down and relaxed, evening his breathing out and closing his eyes. He would at least try, so that Riku slept.

* * *

"So he got away?" Riku groaned at the end of Sora's story. "Good job."

Sora pouted in annoyance as he fiddled absently with controls on the gummi ship. After Bambi had thanked both Kairi and Riku a dozen times for rescuing his mate and fawn, and then Sora for keeping their forest safe, all three had finally stumbled upon a transport circle and manage to get back to the gummi ship. The Forest still was below them, and Sora liked gazing down onto it. It was a pretty place, and he wished they could stay places longer – he got barely any time with his friends. But having all of them on a world put that world in danger even more than it already was – though he did wonder about Bambi's gift. It looked like a Keychain, but hadn't worked on either Sora or Riku's keyblade.

All of them were relatively well and Sora had handed them each a hi-potion without telling them that it was among their last. He was still trying to figure out how to bring up that subject – and he wasn't going to use anything they had left on the injuries that still lingered under his clothes. Once the gummi ship started moving he would use Curaga and see if that finished the healing process. Not that he had even told them he had been injured at all – he had glossed over the exact details of the attacks on both sides – except Alcexan's eye. That he had told them about.

"Hey, it's not my fault. The guy came out of nowhere and opened a portal. I tried to go after them, but the portal was already closing," he protested, too late realizing that they might take that a bit wrong. Riku's head jerked up and Kairi bit her lip.

"You would have gone without us?" She asked and he shook his head adamantly.

"No! I would have pulled him out!" His offended glare seemed to unsettle them both and Kairi murmured an apology while Riku stared out the windows.

"Then what?" The older boy finally asked. Sora stared at him, wondering what he meant. There were a lot of answers to that question, depending on what exactly Riku had been asking. Except Riku never did ask just one question – or he did, but there were three other questions hidden in them that Sora didn't see. Riku was complicated – but it was okay. Sora understood most of the time, and usually answering the simplest version of the question seemed to satisfy the boy – but this was something else.

"I don't really know what I would have done then," he answered, searching Riku's face. "I would have found you guys and we all could have come up with a plan. I guess after that it would depend on what he said, right? Last time to get the worlds back I had to close and seal Kingdom Hearts. Maybe it's the same this time."

He hoped it was the same – or at least similar. Otherwise they would have no clue. Except, even after the door had been sealed, worlds were being destroyed. Peter Pan's summoning charm in his pockets and the Organization's movements almost seemed to prove it. Before he had destroyed them, they had been trying to corrupt worlds. If the door was still sealed, things took a different turn. Would he have to open Kingdom Hearts and then close it and seal it again? Would they get their world back then?

"You could have gone there and done it. It's likely they're after Kingdom Hearts and... pathways tend to open for those who want it so bad," Kairi murmured.

Sora frowned and stared at them both, letting the silence stretch until he had their attention. He took a step forward and grabbed their hands in his own. Earnestly he said, "If I have the choice, I won't go anywhere without you two." That sunk in and then he grinned mischievously. "You two tend to get yourself in all sorts of trouble without me."

"_We_ do?" Riku raised an incredulous eyebrow. "You end up stumbling halfway around the universe before getting it right, and we're the ones getting in trouble?"

"I can't be blamed for my trouble," Kairi said mildly, grinning at them both. "I was kidnapped. And unconscious the first time!"

Sora just looked at Riku, who looked back. Deciding that teasing him wasn't worth the risk that Riku would have a mood swing and go angst again, Sora shrugged. "I got where I wanted in the end. Besides, I don't do that anymore. Now I'm stumbling _all_ across the universe."

He laughed and ducked under the swing Riku aimed toward him. His boyfriend chased him across the cockpit. Briefly he felt a flare of pain in his legs but it wasn't bad – but it did make him stumble slightly, which was all the opening Riku needed. "Hah!" When they both went crashing into the controls they froze and looked up wide-eyed. Kairi giggled from her spot far away from the transport circle.

"I'm not going to fall for that again. Now stop playing and drive the ship," Kairi ordered. Grumbling, Riku sat in the pilot's chair. Sora looked at him with the expression of an offended cat and was ignored. He stalked off, his lip jutting out slightly. _He_ had wanted to pilot. He was still the better pilot. And he knew where they needed to go – which was backwards.

He stopped at the thought, but Riku had already started. "Hey, we didn't open a new path – what do we do now?"

Sora sighed in relief. "We go backwards. We can see if there was another path from the Coliseum, or go back and try from one of the other worlds." He hesitated but had to add, "Atlantica wasn't explored much. We could try there again."

"Hey, um... Can we stop in Radiant Garden for a little while?" Kairi was looking a little downcast, and biting her lip. Sora was puzzled as to why – there was no reason not to stop at Radiant Garden. Then she continued, "I know we're supposed to be trying to find new worlds and new pathways fast, but... Radiant Garden can take care of itself. A small rest wouldn't hurt."

Riku flashed a grin over his shoulder, surprising Sora by saying, "Sure. Perfect place for you to spend your seventeenth birthday, huh?"

Sora could have hit himself. He had nearly forgotten. By the time they made it back there, it would be close to her birthday, and since Radiant Garden was safe, and had once been where she lived... It would be perfect. And if they stayed there awhile he could talk to some of the others about something he wanted Kairi to have too. And there was the castle... It was now being worked on. Before, none of them had gone into it. But Sora wanted to now. Roxas and Naminé had been created there – even if they appeared somewhere else, the events that caused them happened in that castle. It would look better now, and the memories would be less sore, but it would be good to show Roxas the castle – and to remember some of the lessons he had learned there.

He gave Kairi a warm smile and then his eyes narrowed challengingly at Riku. "So, do you know the way, _Captain_?"

Riku smirked and started pressing buttons – instinctively both Sora and Kairi moved far away from both him and the transport circle. When he turned around he glared at them both from their new position wedged in the corner. "I was putting in the coordinates. It's not hard to put it on autopilot."

He pushed one more button and the gummi ship jerked to a start. Sora winced, one of Cid's lectures on how to properly start a gummi ship running through his head. After that fiasco where they crashed into the jungle, every time they had stopped in Traverse Town Cid had taken him aside and talked – and yelled, and screamed, and growled – about how to treat his ship. Instead of taking some of that and telling it to Riku, what came out was an annoyed, "Why don't you just blow up one of the engines next time? That would get us going too."

Aqua eyes narrowed at him and he decided to make his way back to their room. He sighed wistfully as he pulled out the skateboard her had been given for his birthday. Another thing he loved about Radiant Garden – was the space. And the high walls that he could use the board on and jump straight onto the roofs. He missed Radiant Garden. Roxas teased, _'Sometimes I think you're more attached to that place than to the Islands.'_

Sora jerked his head around, but of course he couldn't glare at Roxas except mentally. "Don't say that! I love my islands!"

Surprised, Roxas retorted angrily, _'I don't see _why_! It never had enough fighting and no one except Kairi and Riku understood you anymore – Hell, it's a tiny world with little magic – you're about the only mage there! You may have grown up there, but Riku was right to want to get off – it's damn boring there, Sora!'_

He wanted to snarl a reply, but he choked it down. Roxas was right, compared to the other worlds, it was boring – but it was good to have a vacation once in awhile. He was content there. _'Content enough that you dragged your friends off to see other worlds. That was your vacation, remember? Not Destiny Islands. You live there.'_

"I_know_ that! I grew up there! Just because you had no childhood doesn't mean I can't hold onto mine," Sora snapped. There was a cold empty silence in his mind, and then Roxas's presence was gone. Sora groaned, knowing he had just said something very stupid to his own Nobody and he reached into his mind. It was awkward, trying to go through his mind and heart and find Roxas.

"Come on, I didn't mean it," he said softly, guilt eating away at him. "I was just angry at you."

There wasn't an answer and Sora sighed and let it go. He would give Roxas time to pout and sulk – though hitting things was probably more therapeutic, there was nothing to hit in the gummi ship. Well, Riku, but Sora didn't trust Riku and Roxas not to knock each other silly.

He had meant to study the spell book Riku had given him, but he wasn't in the mood anymore. He itched to be able to do something – and after a wary look at the door he searched under their beds for ripped clothing. At least sewing would keep his hands busy – besides, he had been told quite seriously that it was a good skill to develop for a warrior – he wouldn't always – or ever, really – have time to get his clothes fixed. So despite how unmanly he had been told it was before, he had learned to patch clothes up – and Riku and Kairi had both managed to rip some of their clothes up. He did Kairi's first, pulling a box of thread and needles from under his bed.

And besides, at least that meant he could do something – Kairi could cook, Riku had mostly built the bridge to the paopu island – and Sora? Sora had hit things and collected things well, but before the night of the storm, he had wondered what he would do on the raft. He guessed he could have fished, he wasn't half bad at it – but now, after it was obvious that raft was never going anywhere, he actually did have a skill that was useful on the raft – besides the fact he could fight off any monster that came near, and probably could have made the raft go faster if he'd had any Water magic – or maybe learned to make Gravity go backwards or something. Somehow, he had managed to forget all of his magic skills in the pod.

He frowned, but didn't like to think on that anymore. Roxas knew more – but they kept their memories separate still, and Sora wasn't sure if he wanted to know. Roxas had already told him they had never met before they were joined, so Roxas wouldn't have been there anyway.

"Ouch!" He glared at his finger and the red dot there. He definitely needed to pay more attention – he could sew, but not well enough that he could ignore what his hands were doing. He would never be better than "good enough" at this, but it needed to be done.

* * *

"Hey, who sewed my jacket?" Riku was asking Kairi as Sora went to get off the gummi ship. Hearing that he grinned and jumped out. He hadn't really though about the fact they would notice – but hopefully he could distract them from prying with other things.

The first thing he did was put the skateboard on the ground. Except this time, he searched his heart. He could feel Roxas, lurking just out of reach most of the time – but he wasn't allowing it this time. He took the part of him that was Roxas and pushed him forward before he could squirm out of Sora's mental grip.

Roxas blinked, and stared around. Grudgingly, he asked, _'So where's the castle?'_

He felt a gentle nudge forward, but no answer. He knew what Sora wanted – for him to explore. The boy was practically humming in the back of his mind. He was about to protest, and stand stubbornly until Sora gave him an answer – but then Riku was calling for Sora and slyly Roxas decided Sora's plan wasn't so bad – it would annoy Riku anyway.

"Sora! Where... Roxas, come back here!" Riku's yell just made it that much sweeter as Roxas zoomed away on the skateboard. He had to admit, Riku hadn't begrudged Sora a good skateboard – it was perfect. The wind rushing through his hair, his feet spread apart, and the way he could just shift his balance to make the board turn – he had missed it all.

Sora's voice was a gentle caress across his mind as his heart soared with joy. _'Look for water.'_ He smirked and flipped up onto a wall, letting his heard lead him forward. Sora knew where it was – and he did too, even if not consciously. He grinded along the edges of walls and slid down rooftops and then slopes as the town gave way to blue rock. And then he could see it, looming in front of him. He had to skid to a stop as the rock just... ended.

_'That's where I first entered this world,'_ Sora whispered and Roxas looked down at the small platform – and then he jump. He ignored Sora's protests as he landed and slid forward a few feet, jumping again, this time up – he had to catch it with one hand and pull the skateboard up swiftly with his feet, but he still managed to land the board and jump to the next of the floating platforms. _'If you lose that skateboard in the water...'_

"I won't," Roxas stated simply, his eyes focused on the next platform – this one had just reached the bottom and was about to go up again. He gave himself a boot and then jumped it – and barely managed to land on top, the edge of the skateboard landing off of the floating rocks. For a moment, he could hear Sora screaming at him – but he kicked it forward and spun in circles for a moment as it slowly went upward. "You worry too much."

_'I'm going to kill you. You did that on purpose.'_ Sora was fuming – that skateboard didn't look cheap, and he liked it – and so did Roxas, apparently. He shouldn't be risking it.

"Heh. Maybe," Roxas answered and then he was off. He knew where to go – he didn't know how, but he did, and he let the skateboard roll toward the edge of what once must have been some kind of courtyard and then a round platform on some kind of weird line – magical? Electronic? Was in front of him. He flipped the skateboard up into his hands in a move that he knew Sora couldn't quite manage yet and stepped on.

_'I could do it if I wanted to,' _Sora muttered, sulking. Roxas smirked, but said nothing – they both knew Sora had tried and failed to do that.

Once it took him to the top the skateboard was down again and Roxas took out his Keyblades as the skateboard whizzed by. "You can't fight on this either."

_'No reason to. Show off,' _Sora grumbled as Roxas took both Ultima and Fenrir and slid around the Heartless, slicing through them – while on the skateboard. Behind them was left munny and a couple of items. _'H-hey, what if those are-'_

"None of them are potions," Roxas cut off, and went through the door and into the castle proper. "Up to the Chapel, right?"

_'Yeah, but how – '_ Roxas didn't wait for him to finish as he went up the stairs – using the railings of course. He wasn't planning on touching one step while on the skateboard, not when he could grind up them all.

The rooms passed in a blur, Sora trying to point things out, and failing until they reached one spot where Roxas paused, feeling Sora stir. _'I fought Maleficent here – and in there was where we first encountered Ans- Xehanort's Heartless. In Riku's body. The portal's gone.'_

Roxas was silent, as he stared at where the portal used to be – and then looked at the doorway. "Then..."

_'Yes,'_ Sora answered, suddenly somber. Roxas stepped off the skateboard and left it behind a statue. Then he went through the doorway, entering the Chapel. It was obvious they hadn't even touched this room yet – he knew this place, where the princesses had slept. He walked forward, hands clenching into nervous fists as he looked around. Now he climbed the stairs, feeling an echo of Sora's steps as he did. Both of them shivered at the sensation and Roxas stopped on the first landing.

He put a hand over their heart. "You could have died. Permanently."

_'Hey, you still would have been around, right? I'm sure things would have ended up fine,' _Sora answered, trying to soothe his Nobody when both of them could feel their skin crawling.

"But then I never would have met you," he murmured in return and felt Sora's heartfelt affectionate joy at the words. He smiled faintly and climbed the last set of stairs. The giant heart was gone, but Roxas could see a flash of it in the memories he had seen once – and through Sora's eyes. There had been power here. Lots of power, and some of it still crackled in the air.

He stood in the middle and then climbed the rubble, knowing this was where Riku's body had stood before telling Sora where Kairi's heart was. Sora shuddered from it, but Roxas had to see. He looked out and let the memory play. He could hear the double voices from Riku, and Sora's defiant fighting. And then he had won, but Kairi was still out. Roxas walked to the spot where Kairi had lain and knelt down. There was a hum in his fingertips and he closed his eyes. This was where Sora had lost his heart, and created him.

There was nothing special looking about the place – only about the boy, whose grin he could still feel right before the Keyblade had slid into his heart. He had awoken the princesses who kept back the darkness – but without a Keyblade wielder they couldn't have held it back long. They had needed Sora – if Sora had stayed a Heartless, and he had been given all of his memories like was supposed to happen... Would he have stopped the darkness?

_'It doesn't matter. I just wanted you to see.'_ Sora had needed to see it again too. He had learned about sacrifices here, and that the dark was never undefeatable if he had help.

"You'll always have help," Roxas said sharply and Sora was quick to reassure him.

_'I know. I have Riku and Kairi, and I'll always have you.'_ Sora wished he could touch the other boy and calm him down – but except in their dreams, they couldn't touch each other.

Roxas made a distant sound in his throat, running his fingers across the ground, still remembering the feeling of Sora sliding that Keyblade into his heart. He hadn't even hesitated. A familiar voice said, "That was when I realized exactly how much of an asshole I had been. I thought I had lost him. When I saw him fighting Xehanort's Heartless later... I had never been so relieved."

He shifted to watch Riku approach. Sora was stunned in their mind and Roxas almost switched with him right there and then – but Sora stopped him. _'He's talking to you, not me. Listen.'_

"I can't even believe he did it. He didn't even think about it," Roxas muttered.

"Yeah well, Sora's not big on thinking. He wanted to save Kairi... and he did. Did a better job than me." Riku didn't sound bitter – it surprised Roxas. But Riku had grown up from Sora's earlier memories, and he shouldn't have been surprised.

Roxas offered a small smile, about all he could manage when he could feel Sora's memories, of the darkness that clawed up to engulf them. He blinked and resisted the urge to hold his head. It had engulfed _him_ not them... There had been no them yet. Or it had just come about. It didn't matter. He tried to sound normal as his head buzzed with thoughts that were partly his and partly Sora's. "He doesn't really know when to quit."

"Neither of you do. Don't you think you should get out of here?" Riku was eyeing him sharply, something wary in his eyes. Roxas wanted to shift away – and shift toward him. But the last wasn't his urge and he stared at Riku for a moment before standing, trying to get his mind away from it.

"Oblivion was over there when we- he – came back," Roxas recalled, trying to understand Sora's sudden spike of fear and his own confusion.

"Huh. How about that." There was a note in Riku's voice that warned him, but he was too slow. The older boy was suddenly shoving him off the platform. He stumbled over the railing and felt himself falling and for a moment he panicked, remembering Sora's fall into darkness and wondering if it was happening to them again – but instincts made him land on his feet and roll away.

Riku landed in front of him and held up his hands as Roxas called his Keyblades. "Relax. I don't want to fight you right now. I just needed you away from there. Come on, this way."

Roxas glared as Riku walked right past him and toward the exit, a wave of his hand indicating that he should follow. Roxas gritted his teeth._'I'm going to beat him to a pulp.'_

As he stomped after Riku he hesitated, aware suddenly that Sora was oddly silent. "Sora?"

He didn't realize that he had said it aloud until Riku froze and for an instant the boy twisted his head and Roxas could have sworn those aqua eyes were full of terror. But Roxas sighed in relief when Sora answered, _'Sorry. That was just... weird.'_

In front of him, Riku relaxed and Roxas continued, puzzled and growing more annoyed by the second. "What's going on?"

"You and Sora are both idiots, that's what's going on," Riku said flatly as they exited the Chapel. Roxas blinked, shocked at the sudden change of tone – and he wasn't expecting to be suddenly shoved against the wall with Slender Thorn against his throat. "Change."

"Bite me," Roxas answered, and slammed Ultima into Riku's stomach. Slender Thorn bit into his shoulder and he muffled a cry of pain as Riku stumbled back. He wanted a fight – and Riku wouldn't fight him if he looked like he was in pain. They both knew in their clear moment it would transfer to Sora. _'I don't mind. We'll be here long enough for me to heal. I want to know what he thinks he's talking about.'_

With that indirect permission Roxas was running towards Riku, Ultima held high and Fenrir blocking low as they met Slender Thorn. The first few moves were a blur of blocking and dodging as neither could get in another hit – and then Roxas slipped Ultima to the side at the last second and blocked with Fenrir. The white blade managed a hit on his opponent's ribs before they both jumped back. Roxas smirked as Riku stared at him. "You couldn't beat me before on your own strength. What makes you think you can beat me now?"

"I told you I don't want a fight," Riku growled. "Just change."

"Tell me why," Roxas replied – and dodged as Riku's blade suddenly flicked forward into the space he had just inhabited. He had forgotten how fast he could be.

"I want to make sure Sora's _there_," Riku snapped, and Fenrir threw him back. Roxas paused instead of following up on the advantage, puzzled.

"Of course he is. Where else would he be?" Roxas stayed still as Riku tried to rush him, meeting his gaze with cold blue eyes. He wasn't going to defend himself – and Riku wouldn't attack him otherwise.

"You think that with how close you are and the power still in there... Are you two really that thick? That was where you separated. One of you very easily could have blended into the other in there," Riku rasped, stopping his attack, Slender Thorn slowly dropping to his side. Roxas could see the honest fear in his eyes now.

_'Sora, while I don't really mind having your arrogant asshole boyfriend freaking out...'_ Roxas reached in and shuddered at just how difficult it was for him and Sora to switch. Sora's emotions swept along him, gratitude, and a promise to always be there. Roxas clung to that, and swore he was never coming back to this place again – he refused to lose Sora, and he hoped it was the same for the other boy.

_'Of course it is,'_ Sora exclaimed as they settled back into their proper positions with a strange sensation of relief. He open his eyes and was immediately being shaken.

"Don't ever do that again! Could you fucking think for once, Sora? Do you know how much magical power is still in there? That keyhole may have been closed, but it's _still there_. We can't see it, but... Damn it!" Riku stopped shaking him and stood up, swearing beneath his breath. Sora winced as he rubbed at his shoulder where Slender Thorn had hit Roxas.

Carefully he took a step toward Riku who glared at him. "Leave me alone!"

Sora stepped back, surprised – and then his eyes narrowed. He was glad to have quick run, because an instant later Riku had been slammed into a wall. He pinned the boy there and glared angrily. "Look, how was I supposed to know, Riku? I just wanted to show him where..."

"Where what? Where you sacrificed yourself? Where you almost _died_? Where I – Mphf!" Sora wasn't going to let him get into the cycle of guilt and blame, and he decided it had been too long since he had stopped Riku from brooding. So the kiss was a bit rough and he had pushed forward too much, their lips crashing together painfully and teeth clinking together but he backed off a bit after he felt Riku calm. He raised a hand to Riku's face, keeping the kiss gentle now. He wasn't good at talking, at explaining what he meant. But both of them spoke better through actions sometimes.

He grinned against Riku's mouth when his friend pulled on his wrists, obviously wanting to be let go. Sora licked at his lips before breaking it off and dropping Riku's wrists. To his surprise Riku didn't push him away to continue their conversation but pulled him closer again, leaning down as Sora had leaned up, one arm going about Sora's waist and tangling in his hair. Sora had absolutely no problem in returning the kiss, especially as desperate as it was.

He forgot all about where they were for a few minutes, his hands fisted in Riku's clothes and hair and there was something desperate about Riku still, and even when Riku's hands were pushing layers of clothes off and he was returning the favor he didn't think anything. His fingers scraped at Riku's bare chest and Riku arched against him as his mouth followed. "D-damn."

He grinned at Riku's hissed word. He loved that he could still get that reaction from him sometimes – and was only surprised for a moment when Riku tripped them both to the floor and switched their positions, his hand traveling down to loosen Sora's belts. Riku's lips were against his neck and he tangled his hands in Riku's hair, pulling back to press their lips and tongues against each other once more. It was then that Roxas chimed in. _'I usually would let you two do what you want... But you're in the middle of the castle and we don't know who'll come looking for you two.'_

Sora groaned, only partly at Roxas's statement and mostly that Riku had slipped a hand in his pants. He jerked his head back, his head hitting stone. "R-riku. Wrong place."

It was about all he could get out, but it did cause Riku to pause and look at him, struggling to think. Sora licked his lips and watched Riku's eyes follow the motion. "We need to stop. We're in the middle of the castle."

He could almost see Riku's disappointment before the boy rolled off of him. Sora kept on hand tangled in his hair, unwilling to totally loose contact with his friend. Riku slid one hand onto his chest and they both lay there. Sora could hear both of them panting and his own heart was beating much to fast. His skin yearned for more touch and he desperately wished they weren't so far from the showers on the gummi ship.

"You know... It's unlikely anyone would come up here..." Riku trailed off suggestively. Sora reached out with his free hand and groped behind him. As Riku looked at him with a sly smile, he threw a black shirt at him. By the zippers, it was Riku's.

"Unlikely is not impossible," A deep voice commented and Sora's head jerked up, his eyes meeting serious gray ones. "Sora, get dressed and come here."

"Sure, Leon," he chirped before Riku could act. He gathered his shirts and grimaced, aware of how uncomfortable he was going to be during this talk – though at least being away from Riku would give him time to be less excited.

He watched Riku sliding on his shirt and vest and forced himself to look away. He definitely needed a few minutes away or likely they were just going to end up back on each other. He gave Riku a look he hoped was reassuring before he turned and followed Leon, putting on his shirts as he went. He paused and picked up the skateboard. "So, what's this about?"

Leon was silent for a moment, and then looked, though Sora would never have credited it, faintly embarrassed. "Do you two know what you're doing?"

Sora almost slid to a stop. He stared with round eyes at the taller man. "Um... We haven't yet... We've... He's won't be my first."

Leon looked, if anything, pained. Roxas snickered. _'I don't think he needed to know that, really.'_

And yet, the man asked, "So you do know."

Sora hesitated slightly, wondering what Leon was getting at – and he did remember that night, over a year ago, and that certain things were a little fuzzy and hadn't been explained – but he could wing it. "Sure."

Leon scowled. "You don't." Apparently he hadn't liked that hesitation.

"You're not about to give me a sex talk, are you?" Sora asked, horrified.

Thankfully, Leon answered quickly, "No."

Sora relaxed. However, they were nearing the library now, and he was pushed in there. "Aerith will."

"What am I doing, Leon?" Aerith asked, peering up the stairs at them. Leon stared and then turned around, waving a hand casually.

"Sora will explain." The named boy stared at her and felt like dropping dead right that second.

_'He did this on purpose,'_ Sora hissed.

_'Probably,'_ Roxas agreed, right before beginning to laugh in earnest inside their head.

* * *

End Chapter Fourteen. 

Decide to end this chapter on a lighter note since the rest was a bit on the serious side. But Leon didn't go up there just to gather Sora up for a talk, that just became an amusing side quest. Poor Sora. Feedback is always appreciated!


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything Disney.

* * *

Chapter 15

The castle had called to her since she was first brought into the newly restored Radiant Garden. Now she finally approached it, glad of the walkways that now made it easier to access. Riku and Sora had run on before her, but she had wanted to approach alone. Or at least the semblance of singularity – she was ignoring the ninja who was playing casual guard behind her. Yuffie didn't know how much she had improved, but Kairi wasn't too annoyed. She even waited on the platform leading up to the main door, grinning as the ninja girl shrugged, unashamed, and joined her.

Kairi rode in silence, though she sensed Yuffie wanted to say something. She glanced over a couple of times, looking at her curiously. But every time Yuffie met her eyes, the ninja's mouth closed helplessly. So when Kairi stepped off, it was with an oddly silent girl beside her. She raised an eyebrow at the munny and items still on the ground. "Roxas has been through here."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Yuffie asked, casting her an questioning glance. Kairi blinked, and then remembered they didn't know. Instead of explaining she picked up the munny and the few items and started forward.

"Never mind. The boys are probably inside somewhere." The door was already open from them passing in front of her. She crossed it – and was surprised to find Sora slamming a small side door nearby, up a short set of stairs. "Sora?"

His face was red and she cocked and eyebrow at him. He scrambled down the stairs and gave a wary look behind him before turning toward her. "I... was given a talk."

"A talk?" Kairi tilted her head and her puzzlement only grew as Sora brought out a tube. She couldn't quite see what it said, but Yuffie made a sound behind her that sounded like muffled laughter.

"This, is lube," Sora explained, still red and his eyes wide. "I don't even want to know why she had it on her. Or how she _knows_ all that."

"Sora, you aren't making sense," Kairi said patiently, taking a step toward him. In her head, Naminé was giggling and behind her Yuffie had failed to muffle her laughter. She glanced back and was surprised to see there were actual tears coming from the ninja's eyes, she was laughing so hard.

Yuffie did manage to collect herself enough to point at Sora and say, "Aerith g-gave him a," She paused to snicker, "A sex talk."

Kairi's eyes went round and she stared wildly between them. "But I thought... Didn't you...?"

"Yes! But... I... Leon decided I needed more information," Sora said faintly. "'Cause the other guy was... more experienced than me and... and..."

Yuffie was now howling with laughter. "L-leon! J-just wait until I tell everyone!"

Sora covered his face with his empty hand. "I wish some Heartless would just drop down and attack _right now_."

All three paused and Sora looked up hopefully. As if to answer him, one tiny little Shadow Heartless appeared. He glared at it darkly. "That's it?"

Kairi giggled and sent a Light Flare toward it, watching it disappear in the aftermath of the attack. "So, was it educational, Sora?"

Sora blinked. "Huh? Oh... I... I'm going back to town, bye!" The Keyblade Master bolted past them. Kairi watched him go, her expression bemused and Yuffie's face red with suppressed laughter. They caught each other's eyes and then both of them burst out laughing.

"Poor S-sora," Kairi giggled. Yuffie didn't even manage that, and they were still laughing when Aerith peeked her head out of the library and her lips curved into a smile.

"Sora came this way, then?" She asked lightly.

Kairi managed to stop laughing and nodded sheepishly. "He was... Ah... Very adamant about wishing that conversation hadn't happened."

"Boys always like to think they know everything, and get embarrassed when you go into detail about how much they don't know. Especially about sex," Aerith said clearly and Kairi blushed. Aerith eyed her and smiled teasingly, but gently. "Though I think you and Riku need it much more than him. He just needed... clarification."

Kairi's blush strengthened and both Yuffie and Aerith giggled. The ninja pushed her gently. "C'mon, let's go into the library. We can have a nice long girl talk and you can give us the scoop on what you three have been up to."

Kairi shook her head and walked strode forward, chin up, and pretended she wasn't blushing as hard as she knew she was. Aerith opened the door to the library wide open and Kairi strode in – and faltered a moment later. She remembered this place. She remembered it very well. Almost as if she was in a dream she made her way through the stacks and to the table in the back.

She could feel the other two women's eyes on her, but she didn't look up as she murmured, "Grandmother loved to sit here and tell me stories... History really, but she made them sound like stories."

"You do remember some then," Aerith said, sounding relieved. "You were so young... Only five, wasn't it?"

"Yeah. Five years old when Ansem... Xehanort sent me away and destroyed our world, thinking I would go to the Keyblade Master. And I did." She grinned slightly. "Both of them."

"Two of them," Yuffie corrected and Kairi shrugged. There was the King as well, of course, but he wasn't her boys and she hadn't gone to him. She had gone to Riku and Sora. "So, anything else you remember?"

"Mostly it's jumbled," She stated truthfully. "I was very young and... I remember Xehanort. And I remember the ocean, before it was Destiny Islands' ocean. Just... drifting." Her eyes dimmed and she shuddered. Both women were quiet. "I don't like to remember."

"And there's no reason for you to," Aerith said quietly, shooting a disapproving look at Yuffie. "If it's painful, don't remember."

"To think you could have been our princess and we wouldn't be here right now. I wonder where your boys would be then. Oh! I could have been your super secret guard!" Yuffie seemed like she was ready to go off into her own little fantasy world and Kairi smiled at her, but she wondered too.

Where would they have been without her? What would have happened? Would Riku have ever wanted to get off the islands so badly? What would they have fought over? Sometimes, she wondered if they would be better off. And then a voice from above her called out, "I can tell you where we would have been. Stuck in a pointless rivalry forever and always missing a part of ourselves. Who knows? I know things would be different with the world... but then we never would have gotten so strong, and our world probably would have been destroyed forever when the Heartless came for us. With no princess to guide our destiny we'd be nowhere."

She stared up into Riku's smiling face. His eyes were very serious despite his almost playful smile. She knew that he was saying what he believed and she smiled in return. She returned her attention to Yuffie as Riku slowly came down the stairs. "I was a Princess of Heart, Yuffie, not an actual princess."

"Yeah, but not all the other ones were princesses at first – but they became princesses. You probably would have too! It's destiny!" Yuffie grinned victoriously and Kairi shook her head, trying to ignore the frosty glare Riku was sending at the ninja.

"If it was destiny it would have happened. I'm happy where I am," She responded pointedly, and Riku placed himself by her side. She didn't look at him but by the sudden wary gazes on the face of the other two she could guess at the dangerous look in his eyes. She nudged her elbow into his ribs warningly.

"She's fine as she is," Riku said coolly and Kairi sighed. He was looking into their questions too much. Casually she shifted her weight and stepped on his foot. She wanted to see Radiant Garden as it was now, and she wanted to see it peacefully.

Fortunately, Aerith had the perfect distraction. "So, Leon found you and Sora in an interesting position earlier, Riku."

She grinned, glad he was next to her and couldn't quite see it. The best way to get him off track was to switch the questions towards him. "Sora didn't tell Yuffie and I just why he was forced to have that talk. What were you two doing, Riku? You would think after what happened on the ship..."

Yuffie face lit up and she grinned like a cat that had just been offered catnip as Riku made frantic scowling faces at her. She ignored them as the ninja asked, "What happened on the ship?"

Kairi grinned at Riku. It was time for payback.

* * *

"You take their relationship better than I expected," She said later, cautiously to the two women. Yuffie looked up from sharpening her shuriken and shrugged.

"Nothing we haven't heard about. Radiant Garden isn't so backward, ya know. Besides, you love who you love." Yuffie continued her sharpening and Kairi smiled softly. After having to be more cautious on other worlds and seeing surprised stares at some points, it was relaxing to know the boys wouldn't be judged by their relationship, like on Agrabah. They didn't worry about it too much, and truly all three were more focused on the fight, but sometimes she fretted over it.

Aerith caught her attention when she heard a throat clearing. "I could say the same for you. Sora and you were... involved, weren't you? Or you wanted to be?"

Kairi blinked, and shifted on the stairs where they sat outside. "We were, for a little while. I... I loved him. But, though it's different, I love Riku too. As a friend. And I want them to be happy. More than happy, I want them to have everything they can. Sora could have loved me but... Riku always would have lingered in his mind. I don't. Not that way."

_'It's not our place. This way we can love them equally, as friends, and they us. At least you rarely feel jealousy. Riku would have... and would have hated himself every second for feeling that way.'_ Naminé gave an equally good reason for breaking up with Sora, and she smiled at the two women, one raising an eyebrow at her and the other smiling softly in understanding.

"Tch. If I'd had my hands on either of those I wouldn't have just let him go. They've grown up. Especially Sora. Still a little short, but he's still growing and I've seen him in battle. Very flexible. Very _nice_." Yuffie smirked and Kairi had to giggle.

"I didn't say they weren't good-looking, Yuffie. Just that I'm not dating Sora. I can still look." She blushed at the knowing look she got from both women and ducked her hair. It wasn't her fault her male best friends both turned out so well. It also made it insanely difficult to even look for anyone to match up in any department – between the two of them they had both looks and personality. Except, perhaps, common sense.

"Yeah, if you find any guys who are as handsome as those two and don't have sticks up their asses like ours, gimme a call. Maybe we can bring a few home." Kairi raised an eyebrow at the ninja. That was a little blunt – and Leon and Cloud didn't seem that bad.

Aerith was quick to rise to their defense. "Leon is much more sociable than he used to be and Cloud... is just reserved."

"Much more sociable wasn't hard, considering what he was like. Now he might say a whole sentence instead of just one word before ignoring you," Yuffie grumbled and Kairi glance sidelong at Aerith who shook her head and smiled. Evidently this was pretty normal.

"I'm sure there's a boy out there for you, Yuffie," Aerith said serenely. Yuffie jerked her head up and seemed like she was about to protest, but Aerith cut her off. "You wanted to learn Cure, didn't you Kairi?"

Immediately Kairi's eyes lit up and she even felt Naminé's interest perk. "I would love to!"

Aerith stood up from the stairs and moved down into a stone courtyard. A fountain was there, though it wasn't working and Kairi wondered if she had ever played in it as a girl – she didn't remember. "Come on, we'll see how much we can get done today."

Kairi followed her, and remembering when Queen Minnie had taught her she stood facing the other woman and relaxed, listening to her heartbeat and imagining the energy that flowed in her body to gather. Aerith smiled. "You should have been taught magic years ago. All of your magic will be light and you won't do as well on some things, like most of Sora's elemental magic... but Cure should work out just fine. You may want to look into learning reflect as well, and other shielding spells."

Her eyes widened at the advice and she smiled almost shyly. Queen Minnie hadn't said half so much about her potential – but then, she had still been learning how to center herself and her magic. Sora didn't even seem to know what she was talking about when it came to that. Perhaps this was the difference. "Can Sora use the same magic I do?"

"To a degree. He can touch it, and perhaps with you he could use your basic spell – what was it?" Aerith paused to look at her.

Kairi couldn't help but want to show off a little, and she sent a ball of light spinning off away from them. "Light Flare. Sora could do that?"

"If you were near, yes," Aerith said, smiling at her. "All three of you have hearts that are very closely connected. You can draw a little bit from each other. It's very unique, and you should treasure that closeness."

Kairi briefly put a hand to her heart, knowing if she tried she could feel the faint echoes of two other hearts. "I do. Is it because...?"

"You are a Princess of Heart? In part. And because they are Wielders of the Keyblade, and love you. They are tied to each other, just as much as you." Aerith's face was peaceful, and Kairi took her hand away. She was glad that it wasn't just her doing, but theirs as well. It didn't matter if it only happened because they all were special, she welcomed their closeness.

"I've seen Sora use Dark Aura with Riku," She admitted. When the two were close in battle sometimes their abilities just seemed to skyrocket.

Aerith's face flickered briefly into a mischievous smile. "I think we already know how close Sora and Riku are."

She joined in with the other two women as they began to giggle, but her eyes caught a flash of silver on a balcony over the courtyard and she had to ask, "Could Riku learn Cure? He can make those potions and they're more effective than normal ones but Curaga still... is better. And as we get stronger the potions don't work as well."

Aerith grew serious at the questions and sighed. "I'm sorry. I don't think he can. He is too much of twilight." Kairi's face fell and she bit her lip, not wanting to look up to see how Riku had taken it. Then Aerith continued rather hurriedly, "But if he can make potions, he might be able to learn to make other healing items with his magic, eventually."

She brightened and glanced quickly up, relieved to see Riku was still watching, and looking interested. "Really? Like what?"

"Well, I imagine making potions takes a lot of his magical energy, but maybe hi-potions, or other items – probably not Ethers, I'm afraid, or Elixirs. But Mega-Potions could be useful to you three. Maybe he'll be able to make items we don't even know about yet," Aerith explained encouragingly. Kairi was content with that, though she doubted Riku would be. She fully expected him to be in the library later reading up on it.

"Okay," Kairi said, and took a deep breath. "I'm ready."

"Don't be nervous. This is a healing spell. I'll teach you some basics of how the energy moves and then we can go visit the hospital for practice. Luckily I have a good supply of ethers, but it won't last forever." She guessed that was Aerith's way of saying, "Learn quickly."

"I'll do my best," She promised.

* * *

A few days later she sat outside of the castle, down near the water where Sora had appeared the first time, and Riku, they had found out. She hadn't expected to find Sora practicing new magic as well, but he was and they smile sheepishly at each other before she tried to focus on making Cure work, and he did... what seemed to be some sort of water spell.

It was her birthday today, and she had seen both of her boys grinning at her more than once when they thought she wasn't looking. She was excited to think of what she might get. _'Focus, Kairi. They'll give you presents later,'_ Naminé murmured.

She had gone to the Chapel once, even after Riku and Sora had both warned her otherwise, and had felt the buzz of power - and left quickly. She had just wanted to see; she definitely didn't want what had happened to Sora and Roxas to happen to her, even if they had left before any lasting harm was done.

At the beginnings of another reminder from Naminé she switched back to focusing on magic. There was nothing to heal here, but she could still work on gathering the energy quickly. As she had learned from Aerith, Sora did do this; he just didn't know he did. He was a natural at it. She was too, but not at this first step – she found it easier to use the same amount of energy but with finer control, making a more powerful spell. Aerith said she would be picking up Cura and then Curaga in no time. She just wished she could call Radiant Spirit on her own, it helped her focus her power and made her magic more powerful. She guessed all of the Keyblades had their own power.

When the energy – white tinted with green – was humming at her fingertips she let it dissipate back inside her and almost began to gather it again. But something warned her and from where she sat she suddenly went into a roll and opened her eyes to see a group of Dusks where she had sat.

She took out her daggers and threw a Light Flare ahead of her before jumping at them. She heard Sora shout and moments later, as she cut into the Dusks and winced when they hit her, Ultima slashed into the fray. It was a short battle, and she frowned at where the Dusks had been. "You know, we've been here a few days and even when all three of us were together we haven't seen more than a slightly high concentration of Heartless. And these are the first Nobodies."

"Well, Radiant garden was locked," Sora said, cocking his head, looking thoughtful. "Maybe that makes it more difficult for the Heartless to get in unless called here. There were never a lot of Nobodies compared to Heartless."

"I guess not," she murmured, running the other part in her mind. If a world had been locked, did that make it at least a little safer for them to stay there? She hoped so; otherwise they would never be able to live anywhere for long now that the darkness was active again.

"Here," Sora said, and pushed a potion toward her. She stared at it, and almost took it – but then she paused, and grinned slyly.

The light was mostly green this time, but still white tinged as she called the Cure spell down on her. She watched as the cut sealed up with glee, and her eyes met Sora's bright ones. "Congratulations, Kairi. Happy Birthday."

At his soft voice her smile became wider and she threw her arms around him. "Did you see that, Sora? I really did it, and it really worked just how I wanted it to!"

Sora chuckled and hugged her lightly back, though inwardly she rolled her eyes at the nervous way he held her. Sometimes her boys were such_boys_. She let go and stepped back. "What spell are you working on?"

"Another basic elemental one in that book Riku gave me. Water – it causes a wall of water. Or, it will. Right now I think I have the first level and it sort of just causes a small wave. Not very strong yet." He looked disappointed and she resisted the urge to tousle his hair, instead just flicking a lock to make him look up at her, surprised.

"Did you get Firaga overnight? Or Blizzaga?" She asked pointedly and he rubbed the back of his head.

"No," He admitted sheepishly. "I guess I shouldn't expect to get... Wateraga? Whatever it's called. The highest level so soon."

"Exactly," She said and they faded into content silence. She stared down at the water below them and she could feel his eyes on her for a while before he was back to practicing.

Something caught her eye on the edge of the wall, opposite them, and she looked up. She could see only pale purple hair, but it was enough for her. "Sora!"

His head jerked up and he hissed, "Alcexan."

"Are you sure... He was a deer before," she pointed out, her voice hushed, but now she could almost feel it. She could feel Sora's heart – but there was no heart in the body across from her. She paid attention to that now, where she hadn't before, with Yaxent. She hadn't realized then she could actually feel their lack of hearts – Naminé hadn't seemed surprised.

"Keyblade Master," The man said and Sora tensed. "You owe me an eye. And perhaps a bit more than that. Your friend's life will be enough."

Portals opened all around them, and above them, and those wolf-like Nobodies were back – except here they weren't deer and the wolves were much faster than them. She tried to fight them, magic and daggers both injuring them, but they kept coming – and they had gotten between her and Sora. Ultima was killing them, but too slowly.

Fangs and claws bit into her legs and stomach as they reared up, and she jerked away from one instinctively as it lunged for her throat – but in doing so she tripped over another and lost her footing. They were on her in a second and her daggers lashed out. Desperately she called up the other spell. It would do less damage but might get them off of her. Light Circle flared around her as teeth caught onto her shoulder and claws bit into her side. They went flying when the light shot up, more powerful than the last time she had used it, and the Nobodies were torn away from her.

She muffled her scream when flesh was ripped away with them, the Nobodies teeth still having been in her shoulder. "Kairi!"

She scrambled to her feet as Sora jumped into the clear space she had made, and her eyes widened as she saw the yellow outfit. Fatal Crest was in one hand, while Ultima was still settled in the other. She heard the crack of thunder before the Thundaga spelled called down lightning all around them and the Nobodies screeched in pain. She took a breath but leapt back into the fray, staying close to Sora this time. Her shoulder burned and she had to put the dagger in her left hand away. She couldn't move it well so there was no point in trying.

"Kairi! Here!" She whipped around in the direction of the new voice, Riku's eyes catching hers as the familiar golden Keyblade spun out of his hand and she stretched hers up to catch it. Then Riku jumped off of the platform that had slowly been making its way down from the castle and the three of them were for an instant back to back.

"Interesting. We'll continue this later," Alcexan said, this time from closer by as he stood on one of the floating rock platforms, smirking at them. There was a scar running through one eye – an eye that didn't see anymore. Fangs flashed out from his mouth and she tensed at the sight of claws. She briefly looked toward his ears but they were normal. She hoped she never visited the world that he had originated from.

The Nobodies all disappeared as Alcexan stopped speaking and the boys shifted to face him. "Such power among you – but I see your darkness, Keyblade Master. It lurks closer when you use that form. We'll see if we can't get it to come out and play next time we fight."

Sora's yell of rage was accompanied by him suddenly lunging away from them, swiftly moving into glide as he reverted back to his black outfit – but the Nobody was already disappearing into a dark portal.

She flicked her eyes from Sora to Riku, and studied her older friend's face as he watched Sora glare where Alcexan had been. This was the first Nobody to get away from them - and Sora was taking it hard. Riku's expression was unreadable as he called to their friend. "Sora! He's gone. Come on, let's go back to the castle and get you two fixed up."

Startled, Kairi looked Sora over and noticed there were a number of places his outfit was torn and one of his arms looked as if the skin had been half torn off. And he had still been using it. Sora shook his head, but in denial of what she didn't know as he jumped back over to them wearily. Quietly, he asked, "He can't do that, right? Call out Anti Form?"

"I doubt it," Riku answered easily. Kairi smiled, glad he hadn't hesitated. That would have made Sora worry more. As if sensing her thoughts, Riku gave her a quick grin before adding, "Anti Form is yours and depends on your power. No one can touch it but you."

Sora looked doubtful but Riku nudged him toward the platform waiting to take them back to the castle. The shorter boy finally grinned. "Thanks Riku."

Kairi watched as Riku hesitated and she pretended to be looking elsewhere when he glanced toward her. They both knew that was fake, but it made Riku more at ease, and she quickly looked back to see the he had leaned down and was murmuring something in Sora's ear. Sora nodded and entwined one of their hands briefly as Riku brushed their lips together in a quick kiss. She smiled and felt her heart flutter in happiness. They did a good job of balancing each other. Not perfect – but she guessed she could help with that when it was needed. It wasn't right now and she turned her face away and walked to the platform, putting one foot on it but waiting for her companions. She was in pain, but none of the wounds were deadly, so she could wait for them to finish talking.

Then she yelped as she was lifted all the way onto the platform and both boys laughed. Sora jumped on in front of her so she tried to scowl over her shoulder at Riku who chuckled and let her go, keeping one hand on her uninjured shoulder. "At this rate you're going to need new outfits. Sora can't just keep sewing them all up."

There was a faint twitching of Riku's lips as he talked about Sora sewing and she muffled a giggle herself at Sora's warning glare. He huffed and turned away from them. She watched Riku rolled his eyes and smiled at him, shaking her head in mock exasperation at their antics. Riku squeezed her shoulder and the ride up was in comfortable silence.

* * *

They were all in the library. Kairi knew she should be excited about the presents she was going to get, but instead she and Riku were both staring incredulously as Sora, Leon, and Cloud all sat in chairs sewing up tears and rips from battles. Sora was doing less work considering he was fixing his own and that he only had to let the needle guide him, but they were all seriously looking at their work and at the same time talking in low tones about battles plans. Well, Cloud and Leon talked in low tones. Sora's tone was more bright and cheery but lower than she was used to.

"Am I supposed to sew too?" Riku muttered out loud and she giggled at the confused expression on his face.

She patted his arm consolingly. "Don't worry, I'm sure the girls can't sew."

There was a throat cleared and Kairi turned to see Aerith's amused green eyes. "Actually, we all learned how to sew. It was necessary at first in Traverse Town. We didn't have many clothes, and we were all needed for battle so one of us couldn't stay behind. It was also useful when we didn't have many Potions – though that isn't the best way to sew someone up. It was all we had."

Aerith's gaze switched to Cloud. "He probably had to learn for the same reason. He was all alone, and you need clothes unless you want to be thrown out of every town you come to. So we learned."

Her gaze was on them and suddenly sharp. "And when you're traveling with no knowledge of how long you will be away from home, sometimes you need to learn a new skill to distract yourself. He couldn't fight every second of the day. Sora moping about was something none of us wanted to see."

She flushed and saw Riku do the same at the subtle reprimand. Now that she was paying attention she knew they would all look like ragbags if he didn't sew up their clothes. They couldn't spare the time it would take to have a professional do it, and they never thought about their ripped clothes. She had never thought before of what he must do with his spare time.

"Hey, are we going to have a birthday party or what?" Yuffie yelled as she flipped herself over the raining of the stairs and landed in the middle of them. "Come on, this is the dullest party I've ever seen! She's seventeen! Where's the gifts, the music, the booze? The drunken admissions of love?"

When everyone gave Yuffie a long, considering look, the ninja flushed. "What? Everyone's seventeenth was like that, right?"

Sora raised his hand slowly. "Mine didn't have any alcohol."

"Sex?" Yuffie asked hopefully, and both boys blushed. Kairi giggled but had to blush as well, remembering quite well the sounds from their rooms.

"Not... precisely?" Riku said, sounding a bit confused. Yuffie rolled her eyes.

"I'm not gonna ask, but damn, no alcohol, no sex, what kind of party was that? Didn't anything interesting happen?" Yuffie's look seemed to beg for something interesting and Kairi groaned as Sora opened his mouth to answer.

"Heartless attacked and I turned into a Heartless-look alike of myself," Sora answered glibly and there were a number of stares.

Cloud looked up from his sewing and was the first to ask, "You're alright?"

"Yup," Sora answered cheerfully, though his eyes were a bit dark and Kairi bit her lip. But Cloud's lips twitched into an almost smile and for a moment it looked triumphant as his eyes flicked to Leon, who only snorted.

"Good. I knew you were too strong for the dark," Cloud said, and then began to sew again, fixing a long tear in the side of a black shirt that looked exactly like the one he was wearing. Kairi had to wonder if he just had a few sets of the same outfit.

Yuffie seemed put out that the topic had gotten out of hand and she thrust a box at her. "Me first!"

Grinning at the excited ninja, she opened the box and blinked at what was inside. There were... black boots. And silver, white, and black hair clips. She looked up at Yuffie, a bit puzzled but opening her mouth to thank her when Yuffie interrupted. "I know it looks all girly but the boots have a catch with a small blade at the tip and they're good quality. The hair clips – if you look they all have points or can be opened up into points. I figure with your hair getting long you'll need something to put it up with, and these double as weapons. The colors... Well, I had a feeling they might match."

For Yuffie, the last sentence was incredibly cryptic and she sent her another puzzled look, but she only grinned and said in a singsong voice. "You'll see!"

Kairi shook her head and smiled fondly, but glanced toward Leon when there was a faint shifting. He had a faint smile on his face and said, in a voice that was more of an order than a request, "You will train with me every day until you leave."

There were a few surprised glances from the others in the room, she noticed and Sora grinned at her. "He helped me train. Careful, he hits hard."

She guessed that was her present, though it was a bit puzzling – but if he had trained Sora, he could surely help her. She glanced around and Aerith was next, giving her a book – she recognized it with delight. "Spells?"

"Yes. Ones of light, to help you. Study them well. This is something only you can do." Aerith's gaze was serious and she felt a chill run down her spine as those green eyes looked through her. She would need these spells. She didn't know if she could learn them fast enough if Aerith's intent gaze was anything to go by.

Then Riku snorted. "Hey, it's her birthday. Let us have _one_ happy day."

He pushed another box forward. "Me and Sora matched our presents. For a boy who sews he didn't really feel comfortable buying this half, so... Well, here."

Sensing that both boys were looking at her eagerly, she carefully opened the box. She blinked at the shining silvery material inside. Carefully, she took it out and stepped back from the table, unfolding the material. It fell down and revealed a dress. The material was soft beneath her fingers, and she carefully turned it around to see the front. It would cut low, and there was a V-shape in the silver material to reveal white beneath. Naminé stirred and both sighed happily at the dress. She had a dress already – but there was more to this, she could tell. She glanced down. It went down to her ankles but was more elegant and a closer fit than her blue dress.

She looked up at both boys and Sora was blinking a bit in surprise – while Riku was nudging the box with one hand. "There's more."

Surprised, she looked in – to see matching shoes. A necklace in the familiar shape of a heart – and gloves that would reach nearly to her elbow. As well as, she noted with amusement, a slip and undergarments that would match. They had done quite a number for this – though she didn't quite understand why and she glanced at Riku with confusion and gratitude in her eyes. He shifted and looked embarrassed but answered, "We've been traveling a lot. You could use something that isn't strictly for battle. Though you could fight in that."

She rolled her eyes at the last sentence tacked on and them leaned up and kissed his cheek. "Thanks, Riku."

His smile was faint this time, but his eyes shone with joy as he waved it off by saying, "No problem. Now open his present, before he falls out of his chair."

Kairi turned her gaze to Sora, who was indeed leaning so far out of his chair that if his legs hadn't been hooked behind the front of the chair he would have fallen off already. Giggling, she pulled over his box, which was wider than Riku's, and slightly shorter. Riku had said that he had done half – did that mean there were more clothes in this?

There were, in fact, as she saw, more clothes. The first outfit was a bit like her old one, except split into a top and a bottom. Instead of a skirt there were dark red shorts. The top was like hers as well – except the undershirt was silver and the zippered top thrown over it was a dark red like the shorts. But there was a longer jacket, still sleeveless but covering her shoulders, and trailing down to her knees. It was silver, with a black lining, and her eyes darted to both boys, wondering at the colors. Sora just gave her a secretive grin and Riku rolled his eyes. "He picked the colors."

She set that aside and raised an eyebrow at the second outfit. It was simpler, just a shirt, pants, and a short jacket. She eyed the pants, pulling the material between her hands. She wasn't used to wearing anything longer than shorts, but some longer clothes would be more useful. They were black – and she was pretty sure they were leather. She shot an amused look at Sora, who had the audacity to grin at her. She shook her head and moved onto the shirt, frowning at the crimson color. She wasn't quite sure she liked the darks better – but the short jacket would cover it up. It was, like the last, silver in color, though this time with dark red designs. "Is there something more to this Sora?"

"Well, you needed more outfits good for fighting and... Well, I can't say the last bit but Riku's going to get some outfits for his birthdays as well." Sora grinned at Riku as the silver haired boy shot him a surprised look. Kairi had to smile. She guessed they were going to match – she didn't think Sora would have been so intent on it... But then again, they belonged to each other, and maybe it was the Roxas part of him that wanted to show it. Riku was even more possessive of them both – in different ways, but it was still there.

Her surprise was added to when Sora added, "Plus, they aren't normal clothes. I mean, they aren't like mine... But I, um, searched around and had Merlin help a little. They're more durable, for one thing. And they'll always fit. They have some nice hidden pockets, too, and yours would be resistant to dark magic. Not that it makes you immune – but every little bit helps, right?"

He looked so hopeful that she automatically agreed before looking at the shoes – one black pair, one silver pair, in her usual style. Besides that, there were a few different belts and accessories that she recognized as like the ones Riku and Sora wore – the ones that boosted their power with magic. She smiled in relief, glad to have some better ones. She had picked up a few chains, but they had seemed weak compared to what the boys had.

"Here," Cloud suddenly said and she blinked as a package was thrown at her. She caught it and turned it over. It seemed to have some kind of strange plant in it.

"It can make animals trust you and obey you – as long as they're herbivores," Cloud explained briefly, and then grimaced as his needle went into his finger.

"Useful. Thank you," She said, sticking it in the box on top of her new outfits. She was ready to forget about getting more presents – she had been given more than she thought she would have been given, and was ready to move on and enjoy her birthday – and maybe try on her new clothes. To satisfy the boys of course.

Except a new smooth voice spoke from behind her. "There is a gift I would give to you, Princess."

She turned – and Cloud and Sora both snarled, "Sephiroth!"

Sora's was more shocked than angry. But Cloud sounded furious. "You won't ruin this."

"A gift on a birthday is traditional," The man – if the one-winged being could be called that – said coolly. His gaze shifted from the blond to Sora. "Keyblade Master. We will have to have a rematch someday."

Kairi could have groaned at the way Sora's eyes lit up at the challenge. That cocky grin was not one seen too often, but this time it filled Kairi with dread as he said, "You got it, Sephiroth. I'll kick your butt again."

"Perhaps," he answered and suddenly those intense eyes snapped to her and he held out two pages, old looking and crumbling at the edges. "Take your present, Princess of Heart. You can do more with it than I."

"Because you're a thing of the dark, Sephiroth, and you are weakening," Cloud growled, and was standing and stalking forward.

The silver-haired man shrugged elegantly. "And perhaps our connection is only waning. If it breaks, we shall see... Do I die, or do I become something more? I no longer remember, and our world gave no hints."

"Our world is dead. And it's your fault," Cloud spat, and his buster sword was pointed toward the man. Sephiroth ignored him, his eyes focusing on Riku a moment before they flicked to Sora.

He tilted his head a moment, as if looking at a puzzle he couldn't figure out. Then he smirked and said, "Interesting. Two Keyblade Wielders. More then mere friends."

"Do you have a point?" Riku asked coldly and Kairi saw Sora, for the first time, look a little worried as Sephiroth turned his full attention onto the older boy.

Kairi shrieked as a thin, long sword came out of nowhere and stopped just short of Riku's neck – but only because Slender Thorn had come up and stopped it. Sephiroth smirked and withdrew Masamune. Kairi carefully knelt to pick up the two pieces of paper he had dropped when deciding to challenge Riku and eyed both silver-haired males nervously. Riku wasn't attacking, but he wasn't backing off either.

Sephiroth's eyes studied Slender Thorn. "Christened in blood. Who made you that, Wielder?"

"I did," Sora announced, striding forward to glare at Sephiroth from Riku's side. Kairi watched Sephiroth's attention turn and the small brunet bristle under his stare. Riku was almost glaring at Sora for the interruption and Kairi sighed as Sora failed to notice.

Then Sephiroth stepped back a pace and half turned to gaze out the window. "I will fight him as well. I would think that someone you would bleed for willingly would be an interesting challenge."

For some reason, Sora flinched slightly and Kairi tilted her head as the man left, unsure of what had just taken place. It was Cloud who said incredulously, "Sora, did he just _scold_ you?"

"I'm... not sure. We only had that one battle." Sora frowned and Riku glared at where the man had disappeared.

"Sephiroth has strange notions – but in this case, I see why. You defeated him, Sora, and bled because of his sword. And he fought you for every drop of it. Slender Thorn is tainted by your blood. Even I can feel it – and so can he. He wants to challenge him, to test if he's worthy of a gift from a warrior that defeated him," Aerith explained. Kairi blinked at her, surprised at the insight.

Aerith smiled tightly. "Since Cloud and Sephiroth returned here I have... had discussions with him. He has a unique mindset."

She studied the older women, the tense expression and the narrowed eyes and worried for both of her boys. Aerith didn't like Sephiroth, that was clear – he disturbed her. And Aerith was usually pretty calm about people, and forgiving. This was the closest Kairi had heard her speak badly about anything not a Heartless or Nobody.

The sheets of paper in her hand crinkled as she tightened her hands. She glanced at them. It looked like a spell – a spell of light. It was simply labeled "Holy" with directions. She frowned but put it into the box with her dress to look at later. Everyone was muttering around her now, and she ignored the apologies for her birthday getting ruined, trying to focus instead on the hushed, hissing whispers of her boys behind them.

"You've fought him. Why can't I?" Riku muttered and she shifted closer to hear Sora's reply.

"We've stayed here long enough. Tracking Sephiroth down just to play his games is stupid! He'll kill you if you lose!" Sora sounded worried, and slightly frantic.

She looked when there was silence and Riku was giving Sora a steady stare. A chill climbed up her spine and she realized everyone was slowly growing quiet around her as they turned to watch as well.

Riku finally said, his voice carefully even, "You beat him at sixteen. A year ago. But you don't think I'm strong enough to defeat him now."

Sora squirmed under his boyfriend's aqua gaze. Kairi bit her lips as the silence stretched on. This wasn't going well at all. She pleaded mentally and with her eyes for them not to do this now – surely Riku could doubt Sora's belief in him at some time other than her birthday. Sora eventually said, "I don't know how strong he's grown."

"But you accepted his challenge easily," Riku accused, and Sora opened his mouth – and closed it again.

"Yeah. I did," Sora murmured. "But I... It was automatic. I always do."

"But I shouldn't? Right. Thanks for clearing _that_ up," Riku said sarcastically, and turned on his heel and stalked out. Sora turned to her, looking hurt and confused. She sighed, feeling miserable. Sora hadn't been thinking when he responded – and Riku wasn't thinking at all except with his pride. She had thought he had outgrown that.

She glanced away from Sora and looked up into Aerith eyes. The woman sighed and laid a hand on her shoulder. "All of you should leave soon."

"But Riku..." Kairi trailed off as Aerith flashed her a smile.

"Everything will work out. You'll see." But despite the words, Kairi could see the doubt and she sighed. Getting Riku to leave without fighting Sephiroth would be hard.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and glanced into Sora's blue eyes. "I'm sorry. We kinda ruined your birthday."

She laid a hand on top of his. "No you didn't. At least you were both here this time – that was better than either of my last birthdays."

Sora gave her a small smile and she took that to heart. If he could still smile than he hadn't lost hope. And Riku would fight that man and they would get on with their journey. It was just something Riku had to do for himself. She just wished that he didn't have to prove things to himself so violently.

* * *

End Chapter Fifteen. 

You have no idea just how difficult it was to do the clothes, but it is important – or in the future it will be and I decided to get the descriptions over with this time. Feedback please!


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

* * *

Chapter Sixteen

Staring at the ceiling wasn't the most interesting past time, but at least he was alive to see it. He knew he should be grateful for that. He should be grateful Sora had stepped in when he did. Masamune was about to rip him in two. But he partly resented his own boyfriend for proving that Riku was weaker. A part of him thought he should have died there.

He blinked and shifted when he heard the door open and saw Kairi, her head bowed. There were tear tracks on her face and he sat up, worried. "Kairi?"

She jerked her head up and swiftly wiped them away. "Sorry. I thought you might still be asleep."

He studied her a moment, and then silently opened one arm. She rushed toward him and launched into his arms. She didn't cry anymore, for which he was grateful, but her arms did latch tightly around his middle. "I'm glad you're alright."

"Thanks to Sora," He muttered, and flinched, expecting a reprimand. But none came, just her head burying into his chest. "Kairi?"

It was the second time he had said her name worriedly in as many minutes. She looked up at him and he felt a sudden fear wash over him. "Where's Sora?"

She didn't answer, just kept her weight on him, and he closed his eyes, remembering Sora dragging him off, his eyes so bright with anger they were practically on fire. He knew where Sora was. "Sephiroth will have healed and rested by now."

"He had, when Sora went," Kairi murmured, and Riku froze.

"Where are they?" He asked, already preparing to get up. Kairi shook her head. He stopped and looked at her quizzically. They had healed him and he had slept a few hours – there was no reason he couldn't at least help Sora – he had to accept he was strong enough to do_that_.

Kairi sighed but leaned back to look at him. "We lost track of them. It's a bit hard when Sephiroth can fly and Sora can glide and quick run and... We don't know where they ended up and neither of them has come back."

He glanced at the bracelet that Kairi had given to him, that Sora also wore, and wondered. The jewel was swirls of yellow and gray now. Gray he had seen before, usually meaning concern or worry – it had flashed that a lot as Sora dragged him back after the fight with Sephiroth's fight. Yellow he saw more rarely and he was puzzled as to the exact meaning – but it wasn't good. And there was no red, no anger that meant he was still in battle. "The fight's finished."

"Can you trace him with that?" she asked, her eyes lighting up with hope. He hesitated, not wanting to dash her hopes. He had no idea – but he doubted it. Still, he just shrugged.

"Show me where you last saw them," he commanded softly. She looked hesitant, but he was already moving forward, pushing her in front of him. She was dressed in her new outfit of shorts and tops, and he felt faintly ashamed he had chosen today, only a day after her birthday, to challenge Sephiroth.

"Alright. And I'll explain the fight as we saw it on the way," she responded, and they left, sneaking by the quietly arguing adults and out the door. He wasn't supposed to be out yet, incase Sephiroth had done something they hadn't sensed to him – or so they said. Most likely the case had been so he didn't get right back up and go after him again. Which he was doing now. Kairi probably had been told to stay inside as well – because she would go after Sora.

Now they both were.

* * *

He paced the edge of the cliff, mentally swearing every time he spotted another drop of blood. "This was where they fought the first time, too?"

"That's what everyone else said. And where Cloud and Sephiroth had disappeared. But they didn't contain their fight this time. They went up there first." Kairi pointed up one wall to another cliff far above them. Riku studied it for a moment – and then walked to the cliff wall and began to climb. He wasn't surprised when Kairi started up behind him. The wall wasn't good for climbing, and though he heard her slip a few times, he never heard her gasp.

At the top his arms ached from the tension and the effort of the same repetitive movement, but he was faintly amazed to see Kairi not far behind. Before any of this had happened, even he wouldn't have been able to climb this, when he was fifteen. Or maybe he would have been, but not so quickly, and not without falling off a few times first. Kairi wouldn't have been able to – but she did now.

There was more blood, and even some black feathers just lying about. But it just went on – and when he went to where it stopped and peered down the side of another cliff, there was no blood or feathers – they had glided or flew from here, maybe fighting the whole way. He would never be able to track them now. His eyes flicked to the bracelet on his wrist once more and he took a breath. He wasn't much into magic, especially not of objects, except the ones he could make.

He turned to Kairi. "I'm going to see if this has any other uses than telling me emotions."

She smiled at him, but she had a feather in her hand and her eyes were dark. He felt a hint of envy – he had injured Sephiroth, but not enough that they moved from the battlefield. Physically, he and Sora amounted to the same – but Sora had all those extra abilities and it stung, but Sora was a better fighter than him now.

But he tried to focus only on good thoughts of Sora, and fumbling around for a way, he thought of the bracelet, and it's twin on Sora's wrist. Bending his will with all of his need to find the other boy, he tried to touch the other bracelet. He got more than he bargained for when the bracelet on his wrist flared with a rainbow of colors – and then everything around him faded. For a moment, there was only blackness around him and he tried not to panic – this didn't have the same smell as the realm of darkness.

He focused on Sora. It had to be doing something – there was no other reason for this to be happening. For long moments he thought he would be trapped in the dark again – and then there was a flash of light in the dark, and his mind was joined to another. He realized a moment later he was wrong, and there were _two_ others. _'Riku?'_

He choked down a cry at the voice – Sora's. And Roxas had asked as well, though his was fainter. Instead he struggled to reach them more, seeking where they were. He tried to think a question in there direction, but he had a sense that he was only confusing them. But Roxas seemed to get it after a moment and suddenly he could see again – except he was seeing water, and the castle above. It was only for a second, but he knew where they were. _'Good. Now get back to your body. I don't know what you did, but it's draining you and don't do it again – or at least anchor yourself next time.'_

Riku had no idea what Roxas was talking about. Sora didn't seem to either by the confusion he could sense – but Sora trusted Roxas and he could almost feel the other boy gently pushing him back. Half panicked, he tried to struggle. But when Roxas joined in he was thrust away from them and mentally he cried out, _'Sora!'_

He had found him – but now he was back in the dark. He didn't even know if Sora was all right, just where they were. They had pushed him out too fast. He wanted to try it again, talk to them, figure out what he had just done – but he had a feeling neither of them would like that and reluctantly he went back, focusing on himself. It was harder this time and for a moment the image of his bracelet and Sora's blurred – but then he heard a voice call his name and his eyes snapped open.

The first thing he saw was blue rock – he was on the ground. He also saw the flash of silver that was Kairi's jacket. He looked up and met her eyes from where she was crouched over him. "I'm on the ground."

"You fell. You were staring at the bracelet and then you just... collapsed. Are you all right? Did you find them?" Kairi helped him as he made to stand. His vision blurred and for a moment he could almost see the place where they were again – and then he saw the path there.

He had to smirk. He had still been skeptical about the bracelet, despite that it seemed to be accurate – but if he could find a way to do that without going unconscious, then the bracelet was more than worth the space on his wrists it took up. To be able to find Sora at anytime was priceless. It would have been better if both he and Kairi were wearing one, but maybe later they could find a third and connect them. Or... maybe he could make one. He had been studying in the library, though that was mostly battle items.

He shook his head. There was enough time to think of that later. "I found them. Talked to them a little."

"To Sora and Sephiroth?" Kairi asked, sounding shocked. "Through the bracelet?"

He blinked slowly and then shook his head once, sharply. "No, to Sora and Roxas."

He could see her thinking about that, the little frown on her face contemplative – but it quickly changed to worried and determined. "Why are we still standing here then?"

He smiled slightly and started jogging, his eyes sliding over to Kairi. Once satisfied that she could keep up and this wouldn't drain her stamina he said, "We're going back to the castle. Below it, actually. The waterways."

"But... The waterways? How did they even get there?" Her eyes flicked to the castle and he followed her gaze. It was quite the distance away. He could almost see it. Ultima flashing through the air and that deadly weapon of Sephiroth's slashing his boyfriend, throwing him up and away, a new cut one his chest, not deep enough to kill – this time. Riku had first hand experience of Sephiroth's weapon, and one wrong move on Sora's part would have that sword slicing through him.

He shook the vision off. Sora was alive. It hadn't happened –to either of them. It could have happened to him. It almost had – and Sora had saved him. There was a flood of shame and guilt there over being angry at Sora, but he pushed it away. He could think on it later. "I don't know. They just did."

"Why did he have to be so stupid?" Kairi cried out in frustration as they jogged. He gave her a sidelong glance, but she wasn't even looking at him. She seemed to have forgotten, or no longer cared, that it was because of him originally that Sora had left. She was too forgiving for his tastes. They all forgave him too easily.

He left the question hanging in the air, silently repeating it to himself. Why had _he_ been so stupid? He had wanted to prove himself. That was the only reason he could think of – except proving himself wouldn't get their island back. If Sephiroth had killed him, they might have continued on their own – and died without that third part by their side.

They went to the castle in silence, and Riku headed down toward the waterway, Kairi following behind him. "They should be around here."

"Yes. I can see that," Kairi said, her voice hushed. He pivoted to face in her direction and his eyes widened. There was blood on the walls and feathers floating on the water. His eyes followed the trail of blood to where it went over a wall and he found himself following it, tracing it and climbing the wall beside it and up on a ledge. From there he could see into a courtyard – and he saw Roxas sitting there, looking up at him quietly.

Riku scrambled off the ledge and over to Roxas, who stared up at him with dark, serious eyes. "I'll switch back with him soon. He just needed... space. Away from the fight."

There was a quiet gasp from behind them. Roxas didn't look, and Riku had a feeling that the blond already knew why Kairi was gasping. Riku turned – and stifled a gasp himself. Sephiroth was there – not standing, not sitting, but unconscious, and in a mangled heap. His wing was at an odd angle and feathers were strewn everywhere.

"Roxas." Kairi's voice was firm, worried – and a little angry. "This was done by claws. I though he was being careful."

There was a quiet inaudible mutter from Roxas and then Riku tilted his head. He got a whisper of something from his bracelet and he turned, suspecting that now he could feel it. When the whisper of power was gone, there was Sora, his face pale and his hands balling quickly into fists to hide the shaking. "I was careful. _Very_ careful."

Riku didn't like the sound of that. He tried to catch Sora's eyes, to see if he was implying what he thought he was. At the same time, he begged Kairi not to ask. He didn't want to know – this was _Sora_. If it had been him – that was different. But not _Sora_. Kairi asked anyway. "If you were careful, how did you transform?"

Riku saw Sora close his eyes as they both stared at him. Riku wished he could do the same – but instead he stared at his boyfriend, at the way he shook and bit his lip. His face was pale enough that Riku wondered if he would honestly be sick. Sora finally answered after a long silence, "I went Anti on purpose."

The silence was louder than any screams could have been and into it Sora babbled, "I didn't even know I _could_. I was just so _angry_ with him and it was so easy. It was... there was Master Form, but then there was Anti Form, so powerful and I wanted to hurt him for what he had done. But at the same time, I knew I shouldn't, so I..."

He trailed off and Riku glanced at Kairi, seeing the horror flicker on her face – and then into disappointment, shaded with sympathy. "Sora... You can't just... If you know something's wrong, you can't just turn to another part of yourself and have it do it! Do you want to fall into darkness?"

"Like me," Riku added quietly, and he didn't need to look at either of them to see they had stiffened. But a hand slipped into his quickly, and he glanced up to see Sora staring at him worriedly. "I should be the one worried."

Sora smiled, a bit bitterly. "I won't do it again. I... I shouldn't have done it in the first place. But I wasn't thinking. He almost_killed_ you. I didn't want him to get away with that."

Quietly, so Kairi wouldn't hear Riku asked, "Did you want to kill him?"

Sora looked at him silently, his expression too serious for his usual moods. "I think I did."

"Do you regret it?" This was important. And Kairi would understand, she always did, but he needed to hear it first, without the other questions she would ask.

"Yes," Sora answered, and Riku smiled. He could see the guilt there. Sora just reacted first – he did regret things later.

"I can't kill him anyway. It's not my fight. It's not either of ours. I should have remembered that." Sora sighed, but he had relaxed a little, and they both turned. Riku smirked as Kairi pretended to be looking in the opposite direction. It was good of her to give them some time. He slipped his hand out of Sora's and they strode toward her together.

"I healed him a little," She told them immediately, and Riku grimaced, but didn't object. Sephiroth still looked mangled, but he was also stirring somewhat. He narrowed his eyes at the silver-haired man. He didn't really want to be here when he woke up.

Sora on the other hand was staring at Sephiroth and shuddering slightly. "I didn't even know I could turn into Anti Form on purpose. But I did – I'm never going to do that again."

There was a pause and then as Kairi bit her lip, and Sora asked, "Do you two mind if... If I do go Final Form? Not now... But maybe in the gummi ship or in town when there's backup around."

It took a moment for Riku to remember what Final Form was. Another form – and then he did remember. The form that cancelled out Anti Form. It made that darkness less close to the surface. Riku's eyes lingered on Sora, on the turn of his lips that was down, and the eyes that were staring at anything except them. "As soon as we're all well rested, I not only not mind, I'll make sure you do it."

"Me too," Kairi said softly, placing a hand on Sora's shoulder. "But... Are you sure you're okay? This... is different. You've never..."

He looked at her calmly over Sora's head and her eyes flicked up to his. He had given into the darkness before – he even still used the dark powers sometimes. Sora had just given into it once on purpose – and he hadn't even done something truly bad. Sephiroth deserved it – but Sora didn't deserve the guilt he was feeling now. Especially when it was, if either of them actually thought about, his fault. Sora went after Sephiroth because of him, and Anti Form was originally his fault as well.

"I'll be fine," Sora said seriously. "I just... I never thought it would be _tempting_. But I wanted to hurt him. And just to make him hurt, in revenge not because..."

Sora lowered his eyes and Riku put a hand on his other shoulder. He squeezed and saw Kairi do the same. Both of them exchanged worried glances before the three of them slowly made their way back to town.

* * *

It was a few days before they could get time away. But that was fine with Riku – it had given Kairi time to train with Leon. It was something she sorely needed. And he had studied in the library. Sora sometimes was with him, reading the spell book that Riku himself had given him. It gave them time to spend together – and no one interrupted them in the library when the temptation to put down the books and study each other became too much.

But sometimes Sora wasn't with him, and wasn't with Kairi. Riku checked the Chapel once, just to make sure Sora wasn't up there – but there was no sign Sora had been there anytime soon. It was only one afternoon he found where Sora was when he had drifted outside to sit on the ledge of one of the courtyards that stopped in the middle of the air.

It was a simple slip. A bit of sea-salt ice cream dripped down in back of him as he had shifted to stand. He looked up – and his gaze kept going up, to where he could see a hole in the machinery that grew out from the castle. Roxas stared down at him, his eyes a bit wide. But he didn't run, and Riku smirked in greeting – and then scowled as he looked up. He wasn't about to ask for help, but as he jumped and fell back, unable to gain access, he could hear Roxas chuckling.

Finally, in aggravation after seeing no way to get up from the wall and knowing Roxas would disappear if he was let out of his sight, he back edup to the edge of the ledge, and ran toward the wall. He took a breath, let it out – and sprinted at the wall. He was strong, and he was fast, and he knew quite well that he could get at least a few paces up the wall – but that far he could hardly get in normal space. In the in between space it was easier.

He went up a few paces, and then lunged upward. Roxas looked faintly surprised, and he saw a glimmer of respect as his hands scrabbled at the edge – and then he fell.

A hand snagged his wrist and pulled him up in one quick movement. "Sora would nag at me for the rest of our life if I let you get hurt."

"Think of the enjoyment you would be costing him if I was damaged," Riku mocked, and Roxas's eyes narrowed.

"I can still drop you," he threatened. Riku chuckled, suddenly amused, but didn't tease the Nobody further. Roxas pulled him up and he caught his balance and then settled against the wall, sitting down on the golden pipes. Roxas joined him a moment later, still licking at his popsicle. The silence was, for once, amiable, if slightly awkward.

"Is this where Sora has been going? Letting you out for a run?" Riku asked, ignoring the glare he received for his wording.

"I'm not a dog," Roxas responded coldly, and turned away.

"That's not an answer," Riku pointed out, smirking as Roxas's back stiffened. The Nobody was easily provoked – if he knew the right buttons. That those buttons were mostly pride, like his own, made it easier.

"Sometimes he has switched with me. Sometimes he's doing other things. If he wanted you to know, he would have told you," Roxas said, and there was a sneer on his face. Riku stiffened, a hundred thoughts flashing through his head.

Roxas had to be trying to provoke him. Sora wouldn't be hiding something now. But Roxas's mocking eyes said otherwise as the boy turned to stare at him more directly. He raised his chin and glared right back. "Then it can't be anything important."

"It's good you _trust_ your boyfriend so well," Roxas said, his tone mocking. Riku felt himself flush with shame. His words had sounded trusting – but he hadn't been able to keep the suspicion from his voice, and Roxas had heard it. And what Roxas heard... So did Sora. It was his turn to look away.

"You two are so difficult," Roxas muttered, and then sat back down. "Relax, Riku. He's not doing anything dangerous. Sparring with the others and practicing magic, that's all."

The blond didn't sound happy about giving it away, but Riku didn't care. He relaxed and turned back, smiling slightly. It was the closest he would get to honestly smiling at Roxas – even if it was aimed to the other side of the boy in front of him. "Getting in trouble with Sora?"

"Shut up. That's none of your business." Roxas sounded truly upset and Riku was surprised. He just assumed the two always got along – or maybe not always, but most of the time. Roxas wasn't much like Sora – but he came from him. But now Roxas sounded upset and... there had been undertones to the few conversations with Roxas he had had recently. Undertones that he was now beginning to piece together.

He tilted his head and asked incredulously, "Are you jealous? That your Other has a boyfriend?"

"Riku. Shut. Up." Roxas stood again, and the ice cream was forgotten. Cold blue eyes stared at him and he resisted the urge to shudder. Roxas really felt emotions now – much better than when he had fought him those first times. There was real anger behind the boy now, and real power. Sora had never been truly angry with him in their spars in the last year – but Roxas had access to all of the same power Sora had.

So he didn't push it, for once. He took a few shallow breaths, keeping his eyes carefully trained on Roxas – and his hand empty of Slender Thorn. He kept his face neutral as Roxas glared at him. There was a shimmer of a Keyblade – but only of Kingdom Key and Riku blinked at it a moment before staring at Roxas. Before him wasn't an angry Organization member. It was an angry teenage boy. Roxas's attention turned to the Keyblade as well and he scowled – and it changed to Bonds of Flames as Roxas's hand moved in a blur to exchange keychains.

The second appeared a moment later, Fenrir in his grip. Riku eyed him more warily now. This was different. It wasn't the Roxas he had fought – but neither was it the Roxas who had been in Twilight Town. He hadn't really had a long conversation with Roxas – ever. But this was different. Roxas's blue eyes were angry. Not the confused anger of Twilight Town, or the empty, echoing anger of the Organization. This was... this was Sora's Roxas, and Riku felt a sudden flame of envy as he realized Sora and Roxas knew each other better than he ever could.

It faded quickly when he realized Roxas really had been jealous – and maybe living in the same body didn't give them instant understanding of each other. Sora could still be angry at Roxas, and vice versa. It was this knowledge that kept him still; his hands open in a placating gesture as he watched Roxas. Part of him yearned for a spar – but not like this. Not using all their power. They would damage each other too much – and the things around them.

Finally, when Slender Thorn failed to show, Roxas let the two Keyblades drop. Riku quirked an eyebrow, feeling it was safe to ask a question. "Kingdom Key?"

"I was sparring earlier with Cloud." Roxas shrugged, keeping a careful eye on him even as he settled down on a golden pipe. Riku moved to join him. "I forgot to change it back."

"Did you beat him?" He was curious to know, if only because Kingdom Key was less powerful than the others. Roxas gifted him with a superior sneer and Riku smirked. "I'll take that as an 'easily'."

"Everyone always seems surprised when_ I_ call Thundaga down on them. Lightning startles everyone, but despite being Sora's Nobody... Heh. Even Cloud jumped back and took me seriously after that." Roxas leaned back, smirking and sounding cheered. He guessed Roxas hadn't liked being underestimated. And that he had been absolutely thrilled to rub it in the faces of those doubters how weak he was _not_.

"They only know Sora well. They're still wary of me once in awhile, and... Well, sometimes I think they see Kairi as their Princess." He narrowed his eyes as he spoke. Kairi was a Princess of Heart – but she was not Radiant Garden's princess anymore. She was _theirs_. His and Sora's, Roxas and Naminé's – not Aerith's or Leon's.

Roxas seemed to share the sentiment. He scoffed and said, "Kairi could never stay and play princess for them."

He shifted a look at the Nobody, and then asked before he could overanalyze it, "Do you have many conversations with Kairi?"

Roxas looked at him, startled by the apparent change of topic. "Not really – once in awhile Sora and Kairi ask if we – Naminé and I – want to talk to each other and sometimes after that I talk to Kairi. Mostly I just..."

"See her through Sora," Riku finished, and Roxas nodded shortly, apparently done with the conversation for now. Riku shrugged and leaned against the wall. He was perfectly fine with a little silence.

* * *

He had actually been getting restless. They had been in Radiant Garden too long. He had sought out Roxas a few more times, and even sparred with him, though both were cautious about how far they treaded in their conversations. Riku knew he had been given a verbal flaying for provoking Roxas – and Roxas had probably been given the same. Or in his case, a mental one. It was interesting to try and talk to Roxas – he was defensive on the oddest things. He and Sora's knowledge of each other – he had thought by now Roxas would be content with his new existence, but he always seemed uncomfortable at the topic and it was added to a growing list of things to avoid if he wanted Roxas to not hit him with Thundaga,

But he was glad to be going away. Gummi space was a welcome sight. So was having both his friends within arms length at all times. They were all sleeping in the same room again, instead of in different ones. Though that hadn't always kept one or the other from creeping into his room at night. They knew he would always welcome their presence. But it was better in the gummi ship. Cramped as it was, at least if he woke up he didn't have to make sure his nightmares had only been dreams – both of his friends were always there. And he could wake Sora from his nightmares, or Kairi from hers.

The first night, he was surprised when both of them immediately curled up closer to him. Kairi usually kept polite distance and stayed on her own bed – not that the difference could be told unless someone looked at the three separate frames – and Sora didn't always want to be touched at all. In the latter case, Riku just waited for him to sleep, and held him anyway. He needed it, with his nightmares.

Instead he enjoyed the night, with them both close by, and slept with an arm around Sora and his other being used as a pillow by Kairi. He woke up with his arm nearly numb, but all three had slept through the night without even a single dream. He smirked and brushed a kiss to Sora's forehead, watching the boy stir sleepily. Then he slipped his arm gently from beneath Kairi and soon both were waking up. Sora was faster to wake, but the more reluctant of the two to actually move away.

Kairi stood first, stretching out and collecting clothes from the floor lazily. "Are we going to Atlantica?"

"Atlantica. Or the Pride Lands. Either could have new paths," Sora explained, finally turning in the bed. Riku sat up a second later, giving Sora a thoughtful look.

"Gummi space has been clear lately. We should all get dressed and prepared," Riku stated, and saw both of them give him confused looks. He smirked and met Sora's eyes. "Time for us to see Final Form."

* * *

In the end, it was very simple. And it didn't quite act as Riku thought it would. They stood in the cockpit only because it had the most space, Sora took a breath – and then there was a flash of light. Energy drained from him – but not in the alarming amount he had suspected. And when the light faded and he saw Sora's shocked expression, he couldn't help but wonder what was wrong. But his attention was caught by Sora's new outfit. He took a step forward, grinning a bit as he realized Sora was floating a couple of inches off the floor.

"Wow, Sora. You look great!" Riku glanced at her – and suddenly he knew why Sora looked so shocked. He glanced down at his own clothes and it was confirmed. Sora had the strength – but some of the effects had spread. Their clothes had turned silver as well.

"Kairi," He called, and saw her eyes light on him – and then on his attire. And down to hers.

"What...?" She asked, as bewildered as he was. He looked at Sora, who just shook his head. Oathkeeper and Ultima floated around him. He narrowed his eyes slightly, wondering why it was Oathkeeper and not one of the others.

Sora shrugged. "I don't know. This hasn't happened before. Then again..."

Sora trailed off and stared at them. Impatiently, Riku asked, "What? Sora, this is kind of weird."

"Goofy and Donald weren't another Keyblade Wielder. They were still powerful – but they didn't have Keyblades." Sora looked pensive as he talked, and the Keyblades slowed in their whirling as if in response to their emotions.

"But... I can't call Radiant Spirit like you two can call yours," Kairi pointed out. Reminded of this, Riku called her Keyblade and handed it to her before calling Slender Thorn. The Keyblade almost seemed alive in his hand for once and he glanced at Kairi, seeing that her eyes were on her own blade in surprise.

He swung Slender Thorn, and though much of his energy was gone... they could fight like this. Not for long, but if it was needed, they weren't going to be out of commission. He could even feel Sora and Kairi behind him. Not just their physical presence, but also the edge of their thoughts – enough to know where they would move an instant before they did it. It would be great to use in battle. "We can fight like this."

"What?" Sora seemed startled. "But... aren't you tired?"

"Yes... I am," Kairi answered first, "But... I'm not exhausted. Maybe... Maybe Final Form needs less of our energy than... normal people."

To Riku, that was just fine. He could see the other two frowning, but he was glad. Final Form kept Anti Form away, and this meant Sora could transform into Final Form more often without having to worry about it. So they used up energy a little faster – it was worth it.

"I guess this is a good thing," Sora said doubtfully. "I just can't believe we would be this lucky. There has to be a downside."

"We'll test it then," Riku said confidently. "Next small battle we get into we'll test it. You'll see, this will work out fine."

Riku didn't need to see Sora's face to know that he still doubted – the Keyblades moved back and forth uncertainly instead and Riku raised an eyebrow. "Do they always mimic you like that?"

"Huh? Oh... I don't know. I was always in battle before. They just kinda did what I wanted – more than I knew they could, sometimes." Sora shrugged, dismissing the Keyblade's bond with him out of hand. Riku frowned, but let it go. He could pursue the topic later, when Sora wasn't worried about all of them turning silver. Riku thought digging into the Keyblade's behavior was just as important, but he couldn't do a thing about that now. He glanced at the bracelet on his wrist – and stared, once again stunned.

It had faded – there was still an outline of it on his skin, and the gem still gleamed – but it was embedded in his wrist. And it was split in two, a black line running down the middle, with two sets of varying colors. One he knew was Sora's, instinctively – and then the faded colors, the ones harder to make out, those had to be Kairi's. "I found one effect."

He raised his wrist toward them, and Kairi and Sora forgot about other possible side effects as their eyes snapped to where his bracelet had been. Riku stared at Sora's wrist as the boy raised it. It was the same. With a shrug and a grin, Sora said, "I just hope it's not permanent. People would give us a few odd looks if we had jewels stuck in our skin and the tattoo of a bracelet."

"Because that the important thing," Riku replied dryly. "Other people noticing. Not the fact it happened in the first place."

Sora rolled his eyes – and then there was a flash of light as Sora landed and their outfits faded back to their normal colors. The bracelet flared, the colors melding back into one jewel, only Sora's emotions as it had been before. And it was no longer an outline on his wrist, but a thick silver bracelet. "There. See, it's fine?"

He blinked and looked up into Sora's raised eye. "You turned back on purpose?"

"Reverted back to normal, yup. That's enough for now – I don't want to stay in Final too long either. It drains energy much more quickly than the others – though mostly just at the beginning." Sora settled a bit warily into the pilot's chair. His eyes flickered to the screen. "Hey! We're almost at Atlantica."

Riku stared at the bracelet on his wrist for a moment longer before shrugging and sliding into the seat to Sora's left. Kairi smiled at them both, her hand still on Radiant Spirit. He could still feel it as a distant connection, becoming weaker all the time. He had definite theories on why Radiant Spirit existed now, but he wasn't going to reveal them yet. Kairi would figure it out on her own.

* * *

There had been no Nobody this time – but there had been a merman who had sought too much power. Oddly, he had wanted the heart of one of Ariel's older sisters. Originally at least. He wanted to impress her, and became obsessed with the power, with dark magic – and the Heartless that responded to a heart slowly turning dark. What he hadn't realized is the closer to pure dark he became, the closer to becoming a Heartless he was. That was why the Heartless obeyed his call. He was close to them.

He had dealt the final blow to the man as Sora kept the Heartless from his back and Kairi sped about the edges of the battle, keeping escaping Heartless away from the people. It worked well, the three swimming around. And in the merman's cave was a crown, stolen from Atina.

It was as he held it and Sora swam close that it began to glow. The crown floated from his grasp and he saw Sora's eyes widen. He wondered what he saw – all he ever saw when Sora did it was it floating, glowing, and the sound of a click. But now a crown formed at his feet, a black outline with a silver shine to it. Suddenly there were rolling black clouds around him, against a night sky. The crown, glowing silver, gave off the most light.

He took a stroke back, and braced himself against the wind rushing around him. How there was wind under water he didn't know, but he took the Keyblade out and it led him to point upward. The light was more almost dark, like it got sometimes when he and Sora were especially working close together and both Keyblades trapped enemies in bright light and a darker light – if it could be called light. It didn't smell like darkness – it just wasn't quite pure light. It was more like bits of light and darkness swirling together.

The Keyhole that appeared however was as bright as any could be. A rush of power buzzed through his veins and his eyes focused intently on the glowing shape. Slender Thorn shot out its mix of light and dark and the Keyhole closed with a familiar click. He blinked, a little dazed as the light faded. So startled from the experience, he even forgot to keep himself up and drifted toward the sea floor, crown floating down faster. He saw Kairi catch it, her eyes looking at it strangely. For a moment of fierce jealousy he wondered if she had wanted one. If she had wanted to be a Princess. But then she turned and gave it to Atina who had swum up while he was opening a new path.

He was startled when another body slid up against his from the side and a tail nudged against him with each stroke. For some reason he almost found himself flushing as his head jerked over to see Sora's soft, tender smile. "It's cool, isn't it?"

"It's... new. Definitely a good kind of new," Riku said, still feeling a rush of power in his veins. He let Sora set them down gently, and licked his lips as Sora settled down next to him, their tails overlapping. He wasn't as tired as he should have been after that battle. Finally he had been able to open a new path. And not by destroying his whole world either. Smirking, he ran his fingers slowly, deliberately, down Sora's spine and was rewarded with widened eyes and the smile fading to surprise.

"I'm guessing you liked it then," Sora said after a moment, and Riku smirked as Sora turned, shifting to face him more completely. No one would notice them for a few minutes at least. He ran his hands through spiky locks and wasn't surprised when Sora skipped the slow caresses for an impatient kiss. Despite the fact he had started it, he teasingly slowed down the kiss, brushing languid caressed down his arms and back with his hands.

Sora made an impatient noise in the back of his throat and Riku grinned, glad to have the other one being impatient this time. Thanks to the fact they had been in the gummi ship and neither really wanted to disturb Kairi too much they had done almost nothing. Riku had been frustrated – but finding Sora was just as frustrated and with his recent triumph he felt like teasing the smaller boy. It didn't happen too often that either of them did this, forcing the pace down – and usually it was Sora, who was more likely to kiss and then back off suddenly and disappear. Riku wasn't that troublesome.

He laughed as Sora tried to press closer, breaking off the kiss. Sora's eyes were narrowed, and his lips hovering at the edge of a pout, something more rarely seen now. Without warning, Riku twisted their tails together, and flipped onto the other boy, his hands going on either side of Sora's head – more to keep him from floating off than anything else. "Is there something you want, Sora?"

Unexpectedly, Sora grinned. "A lot. But most of it I can't have in these bodies."

Riku briefly froze at the implication and cursed the fact they were in the bodies of mermen. Technically, they could try and make it work, but he didn't relish trying anything below the waist when they didn't really have legs. And if they tried to go back to the gummi ship, someone would certainly catch them. "Damn it, Sora."

Sora did look chagrined, as if he realized how frustrated he had just made them both. His eyes flicked away from him and Riku saw a light of decision there. "Come on. Kairi can handle this by herself. She'll know where we've gone."

"But – she's by herself. If Heartless attack - " Riku started to protest. He did want to go, and Sora was already slipping away from his grasp, but Kairi could get into trouble.

"She'll be fine. We destroyed what was mainly calling them, and whatever's left she can handle on her own, you know that. Besides, with two of us in the gummi ship, she's less likely to be attacked." Sora was actually being reasonable, and Riku wondered how he could suddenly come up with all this. But Sora did come up with observations at the strangest times. Riku did know all this – but he still liked to be there when Kairi was.

The gray tail was rapidly disappearing away from him, low to the sea floor, and he followed after half reluctantly – but spurred on when Sora called out, "I'll repeat what I did on my birthday for you."

He smirked and suddenly swam faster, pinning Sora to the wall while the boy was surprised. He pressed his lips to Sora's hard and then pulled away fast, dashing away "No, you won't. It's my turn."

He heard Sora laugh and their tails brushed as Sora caught up, swimming under him so he could look him in the eyes. Riku raised an eyebrow, and Sora responded simply, "I have no problems with that."

"I can't imagine you would," Riku purred, and was rewarded with Sora flushing, and speeding up to go ahead of him.

* * *

"You know I had to cover for you two. Sora, your shirt's untucked. Riku, yours is on backwards. Can't you two even put your clothes back on right? And I really hope you have more of an excuse for not saying farewells to everyone than just some time to... Ah..." Kairi lost a little steam at the end as Riku raised an eyebrow at her. He didn't even get up to try and fix his shirt. He didn't care right now. He was surprised they had managed to get their clothes back on at all. Only the fact they knew Kairi would be back eventually made them take short – and unfortunately separate – showers and put clothes back on.

Sora hadn't even bothered with his normal clothes, instead just tossing on a gray t-shirt and shorts. Riku had left his vest off, and he smirked and carefully tried not to flush as Kairi eyed the discarded clothes. "Time to what? Get each other off?"

"Riku!" Both Kairi and Sora glared at him, though Sora's was toned down, and there wasn't that much effort in it. He doubted Sora would be able to be very angry with him for a while. Though, he guessed Sora could say the same thing about him.

He waved off their protest. "Sorry, sorry. And we had other reasons. We wanted to see what paths had opened up. And two did."

They had checked – very briefly, more of Sora glancing at the screen and mentioning it. Riku applauded his great memory considering he had been more focused on Sora's neck at the moment. Remembering that, he casually glanced at Sora's neck and smirked and that mark there. His eyes switched to Kairi's and he saw her gaze had followed his and she rolled her eyes. "Sora, do you know what he did?"

"Huh?" As Kairi made hand motions to Sora's neck, Riku laid a finger there and tapped it. Sora relaxed and Riku tilted his head, surprised. "Oh, I saw that in the bathroom. Why?"

Riku glared at him, and Kairi giggled. "Don't worry, he did the same thing when we dated – and then later showed me why he didn't take it very seriously."

"Why's that?" he asked, keeping an eye on Sora's growing smile.

"Cure," Kairi said dryly, and walked outside. He could still hear her giggling in the hallway, but it faded as she walked to the cockpit. Riku turned his aqua eyes onto his grinning boyfriend.

"You'd better not," He threatened. Sora waved him off.

"I won't use Curaga like that. Not until it's needed. Frustrated Kairi though when I didn't want it to be seen sometimes." He was still grinning and there was barely suppressed laughter dancing in his eyes.

Riku shook his head, blowing strands of his long bangs out of his eyes. "I need a hair cut."

"Maybe just your bangs. Your hair looks good long." As if to prove it, Sora ran a hand through it and Riku relaxed enough to lean into the touch. That apparently encouraged his boyfriend enough to continue doing it, and rub his fingers gently into his scalp. Riku decided he would later curse Sora for making him melt into a limp pile of limbs, but his hands felt too good right now and he hoped falling asleep while Sora did this wasn't going to offend him.

Because he was going to do it anyway. He just didn't want to be woken up by yelling later.

* * *

End Chapter Sixteen.

And the next two worlds will take up much chapter space on their own. The next one is a repeat from KH1, the one after that, one of the older animated Disney films. I'm looking forward to both. And after that... Well, we'll be edging into end of the story territory... or, sort of.


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

Notes: Underlined talk is Nobody talk – if you remember in the beginning of KH2 they talk to Roxas – but it's weird, and I never was sure if it was telepathy or something more so... yeah. I have a theory for the story on what it is, but it's not terribly important.

* * *

Chapter Seventeen

Gummi space had been a bit different this time. It was like the path could sense who had opened it, and drew part of itself from the energy makeup of that person. It wasn't dark – but everything seemed grayer. As if it wasn't dark, but some of it's light had been taken away – or just never existed. However, there were also less Heartless. The ones that did appear were stronger than usual, and Sora wondered between battles if the difference of the path made it harder for the normal Heartless to reach them.

The other two were sleeping, and Sora wasn't going to wake them. Instead he watched the gray landscapes go by and realized it wasn't as if they were missing light, but as if the sun wasn't quite up yet – it was gray, like dawn. The colors were there, but the light wasn't enough to see them clearly. He wondered what Kairi's would have looked like – probably so bright that it was hard to see. Here there were darker shadows than usual, but the landscape was the same as if it were any other gummi path.

He sat back in his chair and set it on autopilot, content to watch the landscape pass by and let the ship handle itself. It would only last a minute or so – then another large Heartless would break through. Until then he would admire what Riku had done.

* * *

He had been pleasantly surprised to recognize one of the worlds when they approached it. It was red and pink mostly, but he could make out another side to it, and lots of green on the red that reminded him of the forest there. He had liked being there before – though it was strange, and frustrating, and they would have to be cautious at first. Anything could happen in Wonderland. The first keyhole had been there. Well, the first one he had sealed. And, more importantly for Kairi, Alice was there.

When the other two crowded closer when he continued to stare he explained, "This is Wonderland. Alice's world. It's a little strange, but not any more dangerous than any other world once you get used to it. And... Before we go down, remember one thing."

They looked at him at his ominous tone and he resisted a grin at the worried looks. "Directions mean nothing."

"Huh?" Kairi asked, but he ignored her, putting in the transport beam's coordinates. He pushed both of them forward, ignoring Riku trying to dig his feet in as the circle began to glow. One last push and a quick slide forward, and they were all jumbled on the transport beam together. And instant later, green surrounded them, and a table and chairs was in front and to the left.

He recognized it as the tea party room – and once again the two who had parties here were out. He was grateful – Alice had told him about them once when he had been in Hollow Bastion, right after sealing their world. He also knew it was unlikely Alice would be in this half of the world – apparently there was a more normal part that she came from. He had seen it from the gummi ship, but this seemed to be where more activity would be... However strange the place was.

"What is this place? Who lives here?" Riku asked, eyeing the curiously shaped house and door, and the table sitting out with so many empty chairs – some of them that would look more at home in living room.

_'And a Princess of Heart came from here – one of the stranger ones I bet. Discounting Kairi,'_ Roxas teased and Sora resisted a grin. The other two wouldn't get it. But Roxas had been in slightly better spirits lately. Perhaps it was the spars with Riku that did it – everyone liked to get out and get some exercise. And he won most of the time, which did make him smug, but Sora could take his being smug more than Riku's overbearing version when he had won.

"Here? Or the whole world? No one lives here; this is just where the Mad Hatter's tea party is. The whole world... Well, lots of people. A little differently shaped than most, but they're people. You'll see them later, maybe. Let's go into the forest. The bizarre room should be seen right side up _first_." He knew they didn't understand yet – but they would. It was only a matter of time.

Of course, they didn't get to see much of the forest. Almost immediately Heartless attacked them. Sora had Ultima out before the wyverns could attack. He hadn't seen this kind in awhile, and he could jump higher now, slash faster – but they had improved as well and his confidence was given as beating when three of them twirled down from the sky and smashed him into the trees. He winced at the claws scraping through the cloth and digging into his skin for the few moments that he was stunned.

He kicked and punched, and finally got the three to back up enough to get Ultima between him and them, and swung it at them. That gave him space to fall the ground. His torso burned, and he knew he must have been bleeding. But he jumped back into the fight; seeing that Riku had cleared enough space around him to glance at him, worry changing to relief. Sora grinned at him briefly before continuing to attack. The Wyverns had been joined by other Heartless now, and he winced as he sat the fire surrounding Kairi and the large red Heartless responsible.

There were a few of them and he launched himself at them. The others left were less dangerous in his opinion, and he unleashed a flurry of blows on them. He saw the red ball of fire beneath him too late and suddenly was flying upward. Too fast to catch and he tried to recover, and was halfway through it when his head slammed into the branch above him. _'Sora!'_

"Sora!" Kairi echoed Roxas's shout, but he couldn't respond. Black filled his vision and he struggled against it. He felt something grab him as he fell, claws dig into his flesh, and when he managed to blink the black away from his eyes, there were trees around him, a pond below him, and a Wyvern's head poised to dig into him. In a flash of panic he threw Ultima over his shoulder, dislodging it. And as Ultima was still spinning through the air he slashed with Oblivion at a smaller blue Heartless, throwing the Blizzard spell away from him and responding with Firaga.

Ultima came back to his hand and he attacked with both Keyblades. For some reasons he could sense amusement from Roxas, but he was too focused on destroying the Heartless to pursue it. Oblivion and Ultima whirled through the Heartless, decimating their ranks. When a Wyvern approached from behind he slipped Oblivion behind him to block as he lashed out with Ultima in another direction. He was in mid swing when he realized he had two Keyblades in his hand, he wasn't in a form, and they weren't fading.

He grinned in victory, and raised Ultima toward the sky. Thundaga rained down around him and he jumped into it, striking first with Oblivion, and Ultima sweeping up from underneath. Suddenly they weren't even touching him, and exhilaration ran through his veins. _'Fun, isn't it?'_

There was a tone in Roxas's voice he rarely heard. Pleasure, and excitement. He could see why – with both Keyblades it was like he could really live up to what he wanted to do. Even when the Heartless did strike him, he struck back ten times as hard. Their hearts rose into the sky as he danced between them, rolling under them, gliding among them, and generally just destroying everyone he touched. He was still getting injured – but he hardly noticed, and he laughed in time with Roxas as he whirled in a circle, Keyblades outstretched, and killed every Heartless that had been near him.

He stopped and found they were all gone to his disappointment. He searched for his friends and found them watching him with bemused expressions on their faces. There was a strange expression besides that. It wasn't envy, as Sora would have thought – more like a strange worry. "Hey guys!"

"How long have you been able to do that?" Kairi asked, and she did sound a little annoyed. Sora felt his good mood fade a little but didn't let it get him too down – they had just all gone through a battle.

He shrugged. "It happened a couple of times before, but Oblivion always faded before that happened. Now it stays. See?"

He held up Oblivion, and jerked back, almost falling as a pink and purple striped cat appeared on top of the blame. "Cheshire cat!"

"Is it an enemy?" Riku asked, swiftly drawing closer. Sora shook his head, but the Cheshire cat was already ready to answer.

"Not an enemy, not a friend. Not an ally, not a hindrance. Help? Perhaps. I see things you do not, can you see them if I tell you? The enemies are not always what you think – not all are enemies, not all friends looking out for your health, not all enemies wish you dead. The greatest crime might be your choice." The cat looked directly at Sora from it's widely smiling face. "Two in one, three can be four, or is it three can be five? Is the water what you seek? One of you would, if only he knew."

"What?" Kairi asked, staring at the cat that was balanced precariously on top of Oblivion – on one paw no less. Sora didn't understand it any better than he usually did.

"Light, Darkness, Balance – but where is the balance? What is the answer? Is the wrong choice always so wrong? My stripes are not black and white, you see. What is a question, but sometimes an answer. You, my dear, are a who – but also a what, and a power they would fear if only they could see." That had Sora's annoyance flaring. The last statement was obviously directed at Kairi. He didn't know what the cat was referring to.

_'He speaks in riddles – but there's hint there. Clues. We should at least try. And the water – does he mean this water?'_ Roxas was curious, and he wanted to solve it. This was new, and he could see why Wonderland was so fascinating.

_'We aren't trying it,'_ Sora said firmly, and let Oblivion fade. The Cheshire Cat stayed in the air of course, and Sora grinned at Kairi's openly shocked face. Riku's face was surprised a moment before he hid it behind suspicion.

"What is this – Sora, watch out!" Riku's cry had Sora turning away from the cat just in time to see a Dusk's long arm shooting out and slapping him through the air – and into the pond.

There was a curious sensation around them as the water touched them and Sora squeezed his eyes shut. Roxas saw darkness – and then opened his eyes just as Sora did.

It took them a moment as they stared at each other to realize it was real. Sora reached forward a hand, expecting it was just a trick and his hand would slide right through. Instead he felt hair, and the skin of his Nobody's face. Roxas leaned into the touch, making sure it was real, and then picked at his clothes. They were his normal clothes. Sora's were as well, and Sora hadn't gone Anti Form or something. So Roxas swam closer poking his Somebody in the side, and grinning at the offended reaction – which he could still feel.

Their heads jerked to the side at the same time. It was Roxas that felt it – but Sora felt it through him. There, swimming toward them was a large Nobody, looking a little kike a shark, and a little like a bulky ship. It had the teeth of a shark, and the fin, but it was almost square, and bulky. They expected it to move slowly – they were wrong.

_'Shit!'_ Roxas cursed mentally, and felt Sora agree. Sora brought out Ultima, and Oblivion. He blinked, surprised he still could. And as if to check, Roxas called Bond of Flame, and then Fenrir. They both paused, considering this new situation. Both had two Keyblades – or the same Keyblade split four ways. They had no idea how Keyblades worked. But Riku's was a different type, and Kairi's even more different - but theirs were different keychains on the same Keyblade. That was what it felt like.

The Nobody had swum by them, twice as large at least as the overly large shark Sora remembered fighting in Atlantica. Both barely swam out of the way, using the rarely used ability to swim faster to duck around – and go after it, Keyblades at their sides as they propelled their bodies towards it. It moved fast, but turned slowly, and had just turned around to face them as they put on an extra burst of speed to strike ahead of them.

"Is this what you want?" A mocking voice asked. Roxas didn't need to ask if Sora heard it. Sora definitely heard it, and his eyes narrowed. The two struck in unison at the Nobody, but the voice wasn't coming from it. "This existence? As one? Or as two? Which is preferred? We can make it happen you know. We can make your every desire come true. Don't you want this, Roxas? You could see your Other everyday, face to face. Touch him. Talk to him."

Roxas's lip curled and he struck harder, venting his frustration on the Nobody in front of him. Part of him did want it – he did want to be able to touch Sora. He wanted to race him, to fight him, to do things he dared not even think for fear his Other would hear. He wanted it all – but it wasn't possible. This was just a strange Wonderland thing, and it would fade – and who knew what the side effects were.

"No? What about you, Sora? Don't you want your Nobody to have fun? To have his own life? You want him to be _happy_ don't you? Happiness he can't have inside you. An existence. Not perfect, but what existence is? We can do that for you. Just do one favor for us. Won't you?"

The voice spoke in their shared heart, snaking and tugging at the darkness there. Furiously, both boys shouted mentally, _'NO!'_

They struck as one, Thundaga racing through the water and into the creature. They themselves were momentarily stunned from being so close to it – fortunately it dispersed, but water was still a conductor and Sora reached for Roxas as the other's consciousness began to fade – and his almost did as well. Almost as if it wanted to join Roxas, and almost nothing having to do with Thundaga. He was more used to the shock.

Still, he struggled even as his eyes went black to get back to the surface. They had already been down here a couple of minutes – and powerful as they were, they couldn't breathe underwater. He had spent his time on an island, testing that ability – Roxas had not, and Sora didn't know if it was one of those things that applied to them both.

The surface had never seemed so far, or his legs so slow as he dragged Roxas closer. He began to think he wasn't actually going up when a hand caught his and he caught a glimpse of shocked aqua eyes before Roxas was shifted from his grasp and Riku pushed him toward the surface.

He surfaced with a gasp of air and struggled to shore. He could hear the other two talking to him, asking him questions, but it all sounded like babble as he caught his bearings and coughed up the liquid in his lungs. The first thing he did was crawl over to Roxas and sit there, shivering and feeling that there was still too much water in him – and he realized that feeling wasn't in him.

He didn't have the breath for full CPR, but it seemed Roxas didn't need it. Sora had only pushed down a few times before his Nobody awoke, and Sora backed off at the sudden flare of emotions and physical awareness. Roxas coughed up the water in his lungs and then stared weakly at Sora. _'You alright?'_

"Y-yeah. Cold. You?" Sora unintentionally made the switch from mind to physical, and Riku and Kairi stopped trying to ask him questions. Hopefully out of surprise, but Sora was too busy carefully studying his Nobody to react.

"Cold. Wet. We'll catch hypothermia if we don't do something. The gummi ship?" Roxas carefully tried to sit up, his limbs shaking. Sora wanted to help, but he wasn't much better. A fight and then almost drowning led to a bit of weakness. Surprisingly, Kairi kneeled down and helped the boy to sit up. Roxas smiled wearily. It was okay if it was Kairi – he would have been angry if it were Riku.

"Don't know the effects leaving Wonderland will have on... _this_. Or if we can repeat it," Sora said, inwardly trying his best to convey how curious he was about this and did want it to continue for a little longer. Roxas grinned.

Riku kneeled down, catching their attention, and Sora barely kept himself from just leaning over onto him. Riku looked serious, and despite how warm he had to be, Sora could handle it by himself. Roxas's grin turned into a smirk and Sora flushed even before Roxas spoke his thoughts out loud. "Body heat does a lot for keeping someone from getting hypothermia."

"Does Cure work on hypothermia?" Kairi asked curiously. Sora and Roxas blinked at each other. Roxas raised an eyebrow at the brunet, who rolled his eyes.

"Probably not. I think it works mostly just on injuries, not on sickness." He shrugged, and realized abstractedly he hadn't been healed from his earlier fights. Thankfully he was already wet so nobody could tell.

"Maybe nobody can tell but your Nobody can," Roxas pointed out scathingly. "Curaga. Now."

"I think I used up all my magic on the last Thundaga," Sora explained sheepishly.

Roxas paused and frowned. "You did – but it shouldn't have. You should have more energy than that."

"You have magic too. Maybe it split between us," Sora suggested reasonably. Roxas frowned – and then lifted a hand. Green light swirled around his palm before it split into the air and twisted around all four of them. Sora grinned at the familiar feeling. Now he was just cold. And wet. But his wounds were mostly healed.

"You two are still connected. You can talk to each other mentally still?" Riku questioned, his eyes darting between them. They both nodded tiredly. The older boy blinked and then said, "Kairi, go back to the gummi ship and get them extra clothes. I'm going to find a place for us to rest. Not too far – we'll stay in the forest."

"Alright," She said softly. Sora was faintly surprised Riku was letting her go alone. They had just cleared out many Heartless, and Kairi was much stronger now, but Riku tended to worry – unless he was worrying more over them. He watched Kairi leave and then struggled to his feet. It was harder than he thought. He should have been this cold either – sure, it was probably around fall here by the air temperature, but he was definitely too cold.

"Idiot. We just almost drowned, and we're exhausted in almost every way. I wasn't joking about hypothermia," Roxas muttered. The blonde struggled up as well – and didn't quite make it as far. Sora couldn't seem to move fast enough to catch him, but tried anyway – and started to fall himself.

Then an arm circled each of them and Sora leaned into Riku's taller form. Roxas didn't quite do the same, but was willing to accept the steady arm around him. "Separating couldn't have been easy either. For all you know you could be getting sick because of that – or the water itself."

"Or because of the Nobody we fought and those voices speaking to us," Roxas muttered. There had been two – sort of. They had spoken as one, and he had only realized now that it had been two voices, not one strange one. "Or a combination."

"You fought something under water? That explains it. I didn't think either of you were weak enough to just drown out of surprise," Riku said, smirking. Roxas wanted to wipe it off with his fist as he was half dragged forward. Sora wanted to kiss him and hit him. The hitting quickly won out as Riku added, "Of course, considering this is you two, it wasn't totally out the question that you just stared at each other as you sank. You sure you aren't making up the Nobody?"

Neither of them even needed to look at the other. With the quickest movements they could muster, they kicked Riku's legs out from under him and managed to disentangle themselves from him. They ended up having to lean on each other, but the sight of Riku sprawled in the dirt – probably more out of shock they still had that much energy – made it all worth it. Sora swung a companionable arm around Roxas. "You know, if you think you can manage to walk through the big grass things, I know a nice hideaway."

"Grass things? You need a new vocabulary," Roxas muttered, but agreed mentally anyway. It was easier just to let Sora see his emotions than actually talk. Sora grinned and pulled Roxas closer. Roxas didn't mind and both of them ignored the sputtering boy behind them as they went into silence – at least, they weren't saying anything where Riku could hear. Sora guided them into the large, almost impassable blades of grass. When he had first come through he hadn't been able to pass them, they had been like a wall. They still seemed like a wall, but he didn't believe it this time. Wonderland lied, much of the time.

And it was only a short walk through the yellow and red grass, as tall as trees, before they were in a small clearing. Roxas asked, _'Here?'_

_'Here,'_ Sora agreed and they both collapsed in the middle of it. Roxas could see little yellow flowers nearby, almost begging him to hit them with Thundaga. Too bad his magic was gone for now.

"Hey," they heard Riku growl. "You can't do that. Your clothes are wet."

Roxas couldn't resist it, and neither could Sora, really. Sora grinned and Roxas smirked. "Are you saying you want to see us naked?"

They watched him stare at them and congratulated each other mentally. Riku took a breath and answered, "Only one of you."

Roxas's smirk didn't fade. "I wouldn't mind that either."

Sora's eyes widened, nervously looking at Riku, who was staring at Roxas sharply. Sora struggled to sit up, trying to undress. His vision almost blacked out and Roxas hissed, _'Let Riku do it. He still sucks at getting you undressed, but it's better than you passing out.'_

_'But you...'_ Sora trailed off, but stared as Roxas shrugged. His brow furrowed and out loud he said, "You're as tired than me. If Riku helps me get my clothes off, he has to help you."

"No way!" Both exclaimed. Sora couldn't do anything but glare, but it was enough. The blond stared at his Other's boyfriend and Riku stared right back.

* * *

Once Kairi had come back, both of them had been dressed in some of Sora's pajamas – it had been all that was on hand. Their outfits were hung up to dry and as Riku and Kairi discussed them in low voices the two curled up next to each other, just wanting a bit of body heat – and found themselves falling asleep.

Sora awoke to find had and Roxas were tangled together quite firmly – and there was another body behind him, a possessive arm around his waist giving away the owner's identity. He shifted, and felt Roxas waking up in response. He waited, and when Roxas was fully awake, his eyes darted to the hand holding Sora's waste, and he glared. But at Sora's unvoiced urgings he rolled away and Sora carefully climbed out of Riku's hold. Roxas blinked when Riku didn't awaken, and Sora was surprised as well.

Carefully they got dressed, afraid to wake Kairi up as well. Roxas avoided looking at Kairi. Probably this had been done by the Nobodies – or at least partly caused. But it was Wonderland, and Sora's thoughts showed how crazy the world was – so what if it could happen to Kairi and Naminé as well?

_'What if Naminé doesn't want it to?'_ Sora asked him, and Roxas stared. He hadn't thought of that before – but it made sense. Naminé liked being a part of Kairi, and they still didn't know what side effects there were. It wouldn't be fair of Naminé and Kairi to risk it like they had. Sora chuckled. _'We didn't choose it. Those Nobodies did.'_

Roxas waved off the technicality as they finished dressing. Carefully the two snuck over to a mushroom and they jumped up, wincing at each extra sound they made until they were high on top of the lily pads that grew from the sides of the trees at some points. Only there did Sora laugh out loud and they began to run through the treetops, jumping and flipping from branch to branch. Roxas, without Tarzan's previous training found it a bit difficult at times, more used to tightly controlled movements, but he picked it up from Sora's memories quickly enough.

When they ran into Heartless they stopped. Sora sighed, but it was what they had been waiting for. To test their strength – and Sora wanted to test something else. He focused as Roxas jumped into the fray. He focused, looking for the power – but it wasn't there. He couldn't transform into any Forms. He wasn't really surprised, and he bounded forward, straight into empty space toward the Heartless.

They were quickly taken care of and Sora ended up in midair – and he glided to the platform Roxas had landed on. Roxas narrowed his eyes. "How, if you can't transform?"

"Well, I can use the abilities even without the clothes on – they're mine now. I learned to do it and I don't need extra energy to do them anymore." Sora grinned and flipped into the air, hovering there, just above the platform. "You should try it."

Roxas did, jumping, aerial dodging – and then falling back to the platform. "I don't have it."

He didn't mean to sound so sulky – but it was unfair. He had used some of Sora's abilities before when they switched – but not gliding. So apparently he didn't get to have it. He could feel Sora considering that – and then his wrist was grabbed and he was dragged to the edge of the platform. He dug his feet in too late, and suddenly he was in the air, held only by the wrist. Instinctively he clutched at Sora, grabbing on until he was almost completely wrapped around his Other. "Don't you dare drop me."

Sora chuckled. "Maybe once you see how it is, you'll be able to do it."

"I don't think so," Roxas growled back.

* * *

As it turned out, Sora couldn't teach glide, and Roxas didn't want to learn it. Sora had the faintest suspicion that Roxas actually was scared of gliding, for much the same reason Riku and Kairi were scared when he jumped out of windows. He was afraid he would just stop in the middle of the air, and fall. Sora decided to let the issue go after over an hour and they did something else – they raced through the forest.

It was only later when they lay panting on a rock that it occurred to Sora that Riku was going to be pissed when he found them. Mostly he thought this because of the balls of dark aura he could see shooting off in the distance and Riku's shriek of, "SORA!"

"I vote we go higher," Roxas suggested.

Sora shook his head, his brow furrowing as he saw the dark aura stop coming. Worried, he sat up. _'No, I didn't mean to be gone this long anyway.'_

He waited for another sphere of darkness to slip up through the trees – but none came. As he was slipping off of the rock the bracelet flashed, and he winced as his head spun and his mind connected with an angry snap to another. He could see a fuzzy image of Riku, and he recognized the sensation vaguely from after he had defeated Sephiroth. He sensed Roxas's anger as the Nobody realized what was going on and the blond struggling to see the same as he saw – but Sora was the one wearing the bracelet. This time it didn't belong to both of them.

_'Where have you been? Why didn't you tell anyone you were leaving? Kairi and I have been looking everywhere!'_ Sora wondered if Riku realized that the anger actually traveled through the link he had set up and was actually a little painful. He shook it off and tried to form a reply that actually made sense.

_'We didn't mean to be gone so long,'_ he started lamely, and felt Riku's anger flash. Hurriedly he continued, _'We got distracted! I'm sorry Riku, we should have told you we were going – but we sort of just wanted some time to figure this out. You would have wanted to come with us and watch us. We're fine, tell Kairi I'm sorry for worrying her.'_

_'Of course I would have wanted to come! We don't know what side effects this has yet, Sora! ... Just stay put.'_ The link broke abruptly and he blinked, finding himself staring into another pair of blue eyes very like his own – though flashing with more rage than his own usually did.

"I'm going to kill him when he gets here. What if we _had_ been in trouble? What if we had been in the middle of a battle? That idiot!" Roxas was seething as he helped Sora sit up and the brunet laid a hand on his shoulder and leaned close, drawing Roxas closer into what was halfway an embrace.

"But we weren't – hey, maybe eventually we'll be able to find each other using the bracelets without falling unconscious." He hoped so at least – it really could be dangerous. Last time had been better – he had been more aware of his surroundings. But Riku had been more focused on finding him, and less angry last time.

Roxas leaned against his other, selfishly enjoying the touch he might never get to feel from Sora again. There was a brunet spike just between their heads and he hesitantly leaned the sides of their heads together, carefully feeling Sora's emotions. He was instantly relieved when Sora stayed calm and unoffended. The blond sighed and wished they could be like this all the time. But he could feel Sora's growing sadness and desire to change it and focused on being content – this was something he wouldn't get to do again, he might as well enjoy it.

Sora licked his lips, and then ran his free hand through Roxas's hair, grinning as the Nobody responded by leaning into the touch. "The Organization wasn't a very touchy group, were they?"

"We rarely touched each other. It was... very personal. We were for the most part holding ourselves together because of a strong will. Touching awakened sensations that as Nobodies we shouldn't have felt anyway. Even the friendly ones we turned away from. After all, we couldn't feel, so we couldn't be friends, right?" Roxas's tone was very flat, and Sora shuddered at the emptiness of his words and the sudden despair in his emotions.

He continued running a hand through the blond strands, trying to calm him. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to... Wait, what about you and Axel then?"

Roxas snorted and let out a bitter laugh. "Me and Axel. Demyx in general. And all of us with our desires for hearts. No, they didn't feel as intensely, not like you do, or I do now. But there was something there – they remembered, and there were echoes. They did have hearts somewhere, all of them. Just not with them. The Heartless. Sometimes... No. Nevermind."

Sora stopped, and didn't intrude on his thoughts – but he couldn't help feeling the _want_ in his Nobody. "Sometimes you wish you knew how to recombine them?"

"Or even just find them. Some of them, the first six... they brought it on themselves." Roxas's eyes were dark, and the conversation was becoming much too serious for Sora's taste. But he remembered reading both sets of the Ansem reports and he opened his mind, showing the memory to Roxas as he chewed over the implications.

"You know they really brought it to all of you, right? That is was their fault? I mean, there could have – probably were – Heartless before that, but they started making new ones and... they unleashed them on the world." He watched it set in, and realized he had never thought of it that way before either. But now he wondered why the other Nobodies had worked with them at all. Maybe at that point they didn't blame them for what their Others had done.

"There wasn't any choice. If we weren't working with them, we were against them." There was something Roxas wasn't saying. Sora caught a hint of it, an image of Axel – and then other Nobodies that struck him as strangely familiar. A blonde woman with blue eyes, a silver haired young man – and most of all there was a pink-haired man that looked benign. Yet, despite that, he sent shivers down Sora's back. He left the images alone, knowing there was a year missing of his life, and that something had happened before that. Naminé was involved. He trusted her, so he let it be and let the topic die.

Roxas leaned into the touch and was relieved Sora hadn't pushed. He smiled and relaxed. He could get used to this – it was too bad it had probably been done for some purpose of their enemy. Sora caught that and unwilling to break the silence between them, said mentally, _'Maybe someday we'll figure out how to do it ourselves.'_

_'I don't think it's a good idea. It's probably a bad idea. If one of us is killed like this, when we're so much more connected than we were while you slept... Both of us would probably die, Sora.'_ Roxas was sure of that. Out of everything that was a mystery, that wasn't it. _'Our magic is weakened – not even halved, but weakened. Our strength seems to have remained the same, which is a bonus – but strength isn't everything. And who knows if it'll even stay the same – we might pull for too much power and weaken us both. We fall unconscious at the same time, we probably get sick at the same time – being two instead of one is a weakness, Sora. As much as we wish otherwise...'_

"But you like it out here. You like this. And I do too. I don't see why we can't!" Sora's voice was rising angrily, and Roxas tried to stay calm as Sora's eyes sparked angrily. But he wasn't succeeding.

"Of course I do. But I don't want you to die Sora." He could feel Sora's rebellion despite his words and glared silently, trying to urge the boy to be sensible for once.

"I don't want you to die either. But there has to be a way to make this happen. You'll see. I'll find a way." Sora switched mood from anger to determination in an instant – there was still anger there, but Roxas was more worried about the determination. It was the more dangerous of the two.

"Even if there was a way, it might have a new side effect. You _do_ remember Anti Form, right?" he questioned sarcastically.

Sora's lip jutted out stubbornly and he drew away slightly. "Of course I do! But I want you to be happy, Roxas!"

"Not everyone can be happy, Sora! Stop being such a child!" he snapped, and too late realized that getting annoyed with his Other wouldn't get him anywhere. He corrected himself a moment later as he was thrown back and was staring at the sky. It would get him punched in the face.

"I _know_ everyone can't be happy. But don't you deserve to be?" The question hung into the air, and Roxas actually paused, pushing down the instant response of "Nobodies don't deserve anything" and watched Sora quietly – and sadly.

"You want too much, Sora. You're too selfless. Are _you_ happy, Sora? I know, your home is gone, and you have an enemy out there, but you're with Riku, and traveling with both your best friends – are you happy?" He smiled at Sora's blank look. One second they were fighting, the next he was asking serious questions Sora didn't know how to answer. It wasn't really a surprise – their arguments weren't always the most linear, considering they could see the reasons beneath the words.

Sora avoided his eyes and he could feel the guilt – guilt because he was happy like this. "You're not answering," Sora muttered.

"Whether I deserve to be happy or not... I don't know. But you are – and I'm happy for you." He let that sink in, his eyes watching Sora's face as the other boy thought that through carefully. For once he was thinking it totally through, and Roxas relaxed, because he could feel Sora relenting. They would go back to the way they were – eventually.

"Sora!" It was a sharp, loud call and Roxas narrowed his eyes, not even bothering to turn his head toward where Kairi and Riku were approaching. He had known they were coming but he still rebelled against the thought that he was giving up time with Sora – this was different than when he was sharing Sora's body. The brunet laid a hand on his shoulder and Roxas snorted and turned away, glaring into the distance.

Sora grimaced and kept his hand on his Nobody's shoulder a moment longer before letting it fall and turning to face Riku and Kairi, one looking worried and the other still angry. "What the hell were you two thinking?"

"We were thinking we would actually have some fun without a chaperone around," Roxas said, his voice cold as ice. Riku stopped short and Sora winced. This wouldn't go over well. But instead of Riku snapping back, he saw him look over both of them, something strangely like suspicion in his eyes.

"A chaperone, huh?" Riku muttered, and Sora didn't understand the suspicion at first – but Roxas did, and it only took another moment for Sora to understand. Roxas had already spun around at that point, his fists clenched. Riku seemed to have realized his mistake and was looking truly apologetic. Roxas didn't much care.

The blond took a step forward and Sora wasn't going to stop him, too hurt and angry by the suspicion. Riku was trying to catch his eye while at the same time keeping an eye on Roxas. Sora did look at him – and Riku flushed and looked away. Roxas snarled, and his clenched fist was halfway toward Riku's face when a slim pale hand touched him and he looked into Naminé's blue eyes.

"Don't. Please. All of them have been upset enough today, Riku's just off balance. Kairi – Kairi says he was very worried this morning. He has a right to be angry, Roxas. You do, too – but please. Let it go this once?" What wouldn't have worked even from Sora worked from Naminé, if only because she always looked so sad when they fought. She and Kairi didn't switch as often and Roxas was pleased to see his fellow Nobody – even if he did wish she could have the same experience he was having now. She probably wouldn't enjoy it as much.

He lowered his eyes and allowed both Naminé and Sora to draw him back and step between him and Riku. He almost protested when Naminé stepped between him and Sora, but Sora shook his head. _'Let her. It'll help.'_

Sora was feeling guilty now, and Roxas in turn felt a little annoyed – Sora shouldn't feel guilty. He should still feel hurt. Riku was an asshole. He could admit he had more feelings for Sora than was right considering what they were, and he wasn't even sure how to frame them. He was positive Naminé didn't have them, so it wasn't a Nobody-Somebody thing. But no matter what he felt – Sora loved Riku, and Riku should trust him.

_'Don't. Riku does trust me. He was just angry.'_ Sora was holding Riku's hand, and Roxas looked away. Holding hands wasn't the best term – their palms weren't touching, their fingers were just curled around each other a little. It didn't matter. Roxas kicked a stone in the path as they walked, and stared blankly at the ground.

Sora sighed at the unhappiness Roxas was radiating. But Naminé standing between them caught his eye and she smiled. Somehow, he knew she was telling him it would be all right, and he believed her. Roxas would cheer up – as much as he ever did. Actually, Roxas had been acting so much happier since their journey began he had forgotten when the boy had just been a cheerless voice in his head, resigned to his fate. But once Sora had acknowledged it was Roxas – that had changed. A lot of things changed in his mind on the day of Riku's last birthday.

His eyes slid to the opening he could see, and the clearing beyond. That was where the Queen's rose garden and palace lay. But there was something funny going on. He could hear noises – what sounded like cheering. And a light voice he almost recognized. Naminé gasped and placed a hand on her heart. "Alice is near."

Sora stopped in surprise and Riku asked, "How do you know?"

"Because Kairi's heart can feel them. She isn't as sensitive to it as I, who has been without a heart and notices the changes. But Alice's heart is near. I... I will change back to Kairi. She should be the one to see Alice, not I." Naminé's expression was a fleeting looking of unfathomable pain and Sora wanted to reach out to her, insist that if Kairi didn't mind she had as much right as her Somebody. But the change was already beginning.

He waited as blonde hair changed to red and the clothes switched around. Kairi's expression was contemplative as she glanced up at them. "She could have stayed – but she said it was my place."

"She's right," Roxas said, but even when Sora glanced at him and sent a questioning thought he didn't expand on it, just stared between them, his expression blank. But Sora caught a thought he knew Roxas didn't want him too. _'I had forgotten what we are – and what we are not.'_

He would have said something – probably something a little angry and confused because that was what he was feeling – but they were entering the rose garden, and upon sighting them, a deck of cards rushed towards them, fifty-two cards stomping toward them. He called the Keyblade instantly, on guard. He was still surprised when two came instead of one. Like a bit more of a struggle, more concentration, but it happened. A three of spades waved its arms about as it came near, showing it wasn't holding a weapon. "You're the boy with the weird sword – the one who saved Queen Alice. She said you were the Keyblade Master."

"Queen... Alice?" Sora asked, his voice faltering. But he was already being propelled forward, taken forward, and he shook his head when Riku and Roxas made a move to attack. Instead, they reluctantly fell in behind him. Kairi was the only one who looked eager to go and see "Queen" Alice.

Sora had to wonder how _that_ had happened.

* * *

End Chapter

Surprises galore this chapter! And sadly, the Roxas and Sora thing won't last much longer – it's bad for their health, really. And we get some answers next chapter about what's going on – and more the next.


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

* * *

Chapter Eighteen

Her heart beat at it's normal pace, but something in it sang, something that had sung before, near Belle, and near Jasmine. She had never paid it much mind. She had felt the connection to the other Princesses, and thought it through shared experiences. Naminé told her differently. Naminé had told them all differently, before she had retreated back, hiding even from Kairi for once. She was silent and a part of Kairi wondered if she would ever hear that voice again, and their shared heart clenched painfully. Naminé wouldn't do that to her.

"I wonder if this is the destiny of all of you." It was Roxas, looking at her, his eyes chilly. Since Naminé had come out and then vanished inside her again, he had withdrawn, and as the cards herded them forward she could see Sora's eyes sliding over to his Nobody, worried and nervous.

But she understood what he meant. "Not for me. I gave up that part. If to be a Princess of Heart means I have to be a Queen eventually, I refuse."

Roxas blinked, and then smiled, almost shyly. "And maybe that's the right choice – you're stronger than all of them. You won't gain a title, but you're already more noble."

She blushed and Roxas actually smirked, his eyes brightening. His steps became a bit lighter and she felt a small stirring within her heart and was glad Roxas had talked to her. She could feel Naminé again – and he looked happier. Not overly happy, but she could see Sora's shoulder's relaxing. It was strange – she could see cues on how they each were feeling from the other, but they weren't true reflections at all. Not that she expected them to be, but sometimes there was so little of each other in them she had to wonder how they got along so well.

"Where are we going?" Riku asked gruffly.

"To Queen Alice!" The cards shouted in unison. Kairi had to smile – it just sounded so right to her ears. She hadn't really met Alice - only seen her briefly really, as she had fled with Donald and Goofy, but it had a nice ring.

"Yes but where-" Riku was cut off when Sora nudged him. The rose bushes were thinning out to reveal a castle, and before that, a podium and a familiar cage. And there indeed was a blonde girl, sitting up in the judge's podium with a helpless expression on her face.

When her eyes saw them, Kairi could see her blue eyes light up. "Oh, Keyblade Master! Thank goodness!"

"Um, it's just Sora. Are you – Oof!" Sora was interrupted when Alice sprinted right into his reluctant arms and he looked up wild-eyed. Kairi made a hugging motion when his eyes met hers. Alice was obviously distraught and she instinctively trusted Sora – probably for good reason. He had saved her, and all of them.

After a few moments the girl stepped back, sniffling slightly. "I'm sorry Keybla – Sora. I'm just... oh, so many wonderful and horrible things have happened and suddenly I'm Queen, but Wonderland is in danger and Dina is missing – and I don't think I'm allowed to go home anymore!"

Kairi's heart clenched in pity and she elbowed through the circle of cards that now separated Alice and Sora from the rest of them. She took the younger girl in her arms and made comforting noises. "It'll be alright. I'm sure we can all find a way to help you. Why don't you tell it to us one step at a time?"

"Wha... You... I remember you. You're... Kairi, aren't you? The seventh?" Alice's tear filled blue eyes looked up at her hopefully and she nodded kindly. The girl looked only about thirteen or fourteen now. She had grown some – and was wearing a strange outfit of red and black with a wand in her hand, a red heart at the end. Sora was eyeing it oddly when she glanced at him, and she saw recognition in his eyes. She would ask that about him later.

"Who are... You!" Alice laid an accusing finger at Riku and Kairi sighed, hearing Sora groan. She saw Riku wince and shook her head. That would always haunt him. What she didn't expect was a soft, barely audible chuckle, and she peeked off toward where Roxas was, to see his lips in a clearly amused smirk.

"Her too?" Sora asked.

Riku shrugged and eyed the suddenly more hostile cards, Slender Thorn in his hand. "I was ordered to – I didn't hurt you any, and I'm very sorry, could you call of your minions?"

Kairi glared at him. He didn't sound at all apologetic. In fact mostly he sounded annoyed. But she did look down at the younger girl. "Really, he was just going through a bad time."

Alice didn't look convinced, and she stepped away from Kairi, her chin held high. "You were very rude and that didn't sound like a proper apology at all. I see no reason why I shouldn't... why I shouldn't have you locked up!"

"You could have his head chopped off!" One over eager card called out. Alice's face paled.

"Well... I suppose I could. But that just... doesn't seem right." Alice looked confused now, and Kairi heard Roxas snort and mutter something. She saw Sora shoot him a dirty look and then suddenly Sora was smiling at Alice, walking closer, his expression open and hopeful.

"Look, he really has changed. And he's my best friend. Couldn't you let him go? As a favor? I can't really help you if you lock up my best friend, 'cause then I would have to go help him escape and I'd be your enemy," Sora explained breezily. He smiled apologetically at Alice's gasp of surprise. "Sorry, but I traveled all over looking for my friends, and I can't let anyone take them away."

"Oh, I won't, I won't!" Alice's shoulders had dropped and she looked ready to cry again. "Any friend of yours is of course welcome. Let him through – both of them. Back away and leave me be, cards. I need their help, you see."

The cards moved aside and Roxas and Riku joined them as the cards slowly disappeared and Alice sagged further. "It was Dina's fault, you see. My cat, she went down the rabbit hole. I don't know what's wrong with her. She's no longer a kitten, but suddenly she just went through. That... that was weeks ago. Maybe months. And it's terrible – I can't find her anywhere! I've lost her. Or I thought I had. But I came here, and you see, suddenly I was Queen, and they say they've found her but she's been kidnapped and the animals and flowers in the forest are all silent, hiding and oh, everything has gone wrong!"

Kairi was about to try and comfort the girl again, but she shook off the melancholy that had seemed about to make her break down. Instead she straightened herself and composed her face. "I do apologize. Everything just seems to have gone wrong, and things just kept going downhill. I suppose I'm too old now to cry about it all."

"Anyone would cry if they'd lost something precious," Riku said softly and Kairi glanced at him, and then away because his eyes had slid over both her and Sora and she didn't want to imagine how his days in Hollow Bastion had been when he thought he had lost them both in one way or another.

"I've tried to go look for her, but the cards say I shouldn't, and I do have a duty here now – but I so want to find Dina. And Wonderland has such strange rules. I don't see how I could ever learn them all," Alice sighed. She seemed to be calming down. "But I shall have to try – I just worry so over Dina. She's not a large cat, and surely being kidnapped can't be good for her."

"We'll find her," She promised at the same time Sora did. She grinned at Riku's resigned look.

"But, before we go... How did you end up Queen, Alice?" Sora asked the question that was burning in her mind and her attention became riveted on Alice.

"Well, I had greatly angered the Queen – when I came back here after we held back the Heartless, I ended up right back where I was. I managed to escape, but I had defied the Queen. Apparently, that just isn't done – except by a Princess. Or so declared the Queen. It really is a rule. So while I was in my part of the world, I was adopted as Princess of Hearts. Ironic, don't you think?" She smiled at Kairi, and Kairi grinned back. It was a strange sort of humor there – a Princess of Heart becoming Princess of Hearts – which wasn't even an actual card, but apparently here it did not matter.

"And so, by the time I came here, it seems that the Queen had been taken by the Heartless. The King was so distraught that he stepped down and disappeared and well... Here I am! But Dina isn't!" Alice's blue eyes looked at them imploringly and suddenly Kairi could see that she would be a different kind of queen than most considered regal. She would implore and beg, and be without guile, but it would get her what she wanted and she would do what she thought was right. And she was strong – or had the potential to be. But she had some growing up to do. It was strange the difference just a few years made.

"We'll look for her, and get her back for you, Alice," Sora promised. "I'm surprised that's all the trouble you're having. Everything else is all right?"

Kairi reevaluated Alice's relative youth and lack of manipulation when she saw how those bright blue eyes focused on Sora with a new light. "There is one more thing – you see, they tell me that a Queen needs a King. You would make a wonderful King, Sora."

Kairi felt her jaw drop and heard Riku choking nearby. It was surprisingly Roxas who stepped in smoothly as Sora sputtered and blushed. "Sorry, your Majesty, but as Keyblade Master Sora just can't promise himself to one world. Marrying you would be dishonoring the duty trusted to him by the denizens of every world and abandoning the rest of the universe to evil."

If Alice's audacious statement had made her jaw job, Roxas's sudden eloquence made her freeze in shock. Into the silence in her mind, Naminé softly chimed, _'The Organization wasn't all about brute strength. They did have to learn certain mental and speaking skills – Roxas wasn't very good at them really, he couldn't seem to turn people to the dark. But he still knows how to speak to someone's heart – though to the good part, it seems.'_

_'Perhaps that was his problem in the Organization. They only wanted him to talk to the darker emotions,'_ Kairi suggested. Alice looked chagrined now and was hastily apologizing. Roxas was slipping away with Sora and Riku in tow in the meantime and the Nobody gave her a neutral glance, something unfathomable in his gaze. She guessed it was her job to take care of Alice and catch up – but she didn't understand the almost measuring look there, or what it meant.

"We'll find Dina, I promise. And I know you want a King – but you can't just choose anyone – even if that person is a hero and one of the best people you know, you'll both end up discontent in the end. You have to find someone you'll really love, someone who can rule by your side. Besides... Sora doesn't always understand how complicated some situations can be." Or he hadn't – she was beginning to see he was understanding them more. But still, the delicate balance of a kingdom was nowhere for Sora to stumble – even a kingdom like Wonderland.

Alice smiled and Kairi could see a glimpse of the woman she would become, still that natural blue-eyed beauty, but there would be something harder to her, something that held a bit of wisdom. She would be a good queen – eventually. "You'll do great, you know. In the end, you'll be a better queen than anyone could ever hope."

Alice stared at her in surprise and Kairi smiled a bit nervously. The words had just come out. Without warning, Alice was hugging her. "Thank you. That means a lot, coming from you. I – I've always wanted to know one of us better. Could you... after you find Dina, could you come stay for awhile?"

"Yes. I would love that," Kairi responded instantly. "I think we'll be closer than we could be to the others – neither of us grew up a Princess – but now look at you. A Queen."

Alice looked at her seriously, her expression a little distant. Kairi wondered with a chill if this was how she had looked. "You will never have the title of Queen, but you will be wiser and more powerful than any of us. Your life might never be peaceful or what you wanted – but if you choose right, the rest of the universe will have the chance to be happy."

Kairi stared at her and Alice stared right back, equally as surprised. "Oh my. Has this ever happened before?"

"No. I visited Belle and Jasmine but... Nothing like this. Is it Wonderland?" Kairi looked at the world around her curiously. It had other strange effects – Roxas and Sora, for one. Even if that was more likely to be to Nobody interference.

"Quite likely both Wonderland and who we are. But – you should go. You don't want to fall behind." Alice shooed her off with her hands and Kairi grinned, pulling the younger girl into a brief hug before running after the boys. She never did want to be left behind again.

* * *

Kairi hadn't been quite sure what Riku's new problem with Roxas was until she caught a glimpse of Roxas walking beside Sora, his body just slightly tilted toward him, and his entire being centered on the brunet. In a sudden insight of clarity, she realized what Riku suspected and nearly fell – only to be caught by Roxas himself. She couldn't help but let her eyes dart between him and Sora as he helped her balance. Roxas stepped away as if he had been burned and Sora's head jerked up to stare at Roxas. She saw his face flash with a faint expression of unease and sympathy – but nothing like what she sensed in Roxas. She could even feel Sora's heart – and there was nothing in Sora's heart but a strange extremely close friendship with Roxas. An odd one, but not like Roxas felt.

_'It's been going on for a while – I don't know when it began, or if it's even based in reality or just what Roxas wants and can't have. But he doesn't act on it, and won't, he respects Sora too much for that. And Sora is too deeply in love with Riku. If only _he_ would understand that,'_ Naminé sighed.

Kairi glanced at Riku, striding ahead of them, his shoulders tense and brooding. She glanced at Roxas and he glanced at Sora, jerking his head forward. And then she and Roxas were walking in the back, side by side. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault. Besides – it's not that bad. You know the feeling and you're happy." He looked at her, not smiling, but not with that chilly blank gaze, just an almost sad, sympathetic look. She smiled in return.

She didn't respond for a minute, watching the boys ahead of them. "He loved him more than he loved me."

"No, it wasn't more. Just different. He will always love you – but Riku makes him burn with a look and calm with a touch." Roxas was staring at them when she glanced at him and she grinned at him.

"You're unusually talkative," Kairi said and bit her lip as Roxas glanced away, his eyes going a bit blank – she didn't like it when there wasn't light in them. But she couldn't think of what to say to fix it and so they walked forward silently.

She thought that would be the end of it, that they would be silent forever as they went through the forest – and then suddenly there was a strange silence. She paused and Roxas paused, his gaze going sharply around them. "Something's happening."

Now that she was paying attention she listened with her hearts – and could feel an absence, a place where there was only an echo. Many of them – she didn't know what kinds but she warned loudly, "Nobodies coming!"

Kairi lifted her hand to catch the Keyblade thrown her way as Riku whirled toward her. Slender Thorn was in his hand after Radiant Spirit had left it and she could see Sora surveying the surrounding forest warily. She and Roxas were suddenly back-to-back and she blinked at the trust she placed in him – but it wasn't all her trust. She could feel Naminé's trust in Roxas enhancing her own. Usually she would have gone closer to the other two – but this worked just as well.

"Water!" She heard Sora shout as the first few appeared and she had to smile – he was so anticipating finding a way to use that. She was surprised at the way he did. A wave rose up, but instead of trying to wash them away, it crashed down and it was a few moment before the spell went away – leaving the Nobodies on the ground.

They took advantage of that. She went after the few on the ground – the spell couldn't take down more than a few at it's lower level – and Roxas guarded her back, two Keyblades sweeping in his hands, Fenrir and Bond of Flame promising the end of existence to the heartless shells. She stayed close, and could sense Sora and Riku fighting nearby, their hearts just slightly out of synch but beating just as fast.

There was a new kind, she noticed – and the wolf Nobodies were back. The new kind was spindly, almost fluid in its movements. It was slow moving, and only vaguely humanoid, standing on two thick legs with a thin upper body, arms, and head. She struck out at one boldly – and the legs parted to reveal four thin legs instead of two thick ones, and it lunged for her, jumping up and the legs attempting to impale her.

She blocked with Radiant Spirit, and Light Flare had it scuttling away. It weaved back and forth, its arms crossing in front of it as if it was thinking. She noticed its arms ended in three fingered hands and she frowned. Usually they only had hands if they wielded a weapon. She saw no weapon in its hand. She struck at the legs as it came close again, and this time it jumped up and before she knew it, its legs were around her and had multiplied, trapping her. It's body somehow inverted so now it was in the cage with her – and now a weapon appeared in it's hand, long pieces of curved metal on chains.

She dodged the first two shot at her, crashing into the legs of her cage, but then the chains were around her. She struck out at it, and the Nobody made no sound as she struck, just pulled the chains to trip her to the ground. Light Flares shot up around her. Even a Light Circle, and the Nobody looked weaker and was striking at her more rapidly now. She was unable to keep up some of the time and she felt the weapons slicing into her clothes and into her skin. But finally one blow dug in deep, and the Nobody disappeared.

Standing was difficult, but she had to do it. She looked around for Roxas and sprinted toward him when she saw he was being attacked by half a dozen of the new Nobodies. Everything else seemed to be going after Sora and Riku, but the new ones only went after them. Warning bells were going off in her mind but she had no time to her them. She jumped and whirled, gathering more speed and strength so that the first hit knocked on Nobody to the ground. She followed it, attacking quickly, and dancing around the attacks off another that tried to catch her. As long as they didn't get her in that cage again, she could dodge around their attacks. None had brought out the chains and sickles – at least she supposed they were sickles – yet. She destroyed the one she was attacking and whirled to look for another.

She killed another, and Roxas killed two more. They turned to work on the last two – and the Nobodies pounced. They were both suddenly in cages, and this time in the thin cages there were other Nobodies, and some Dusks outside. She was too busy fighting the wolf Nobodies inside to wonder – until the cage both expanded outward and closer underneath her, forming a ball. The Nobody inverted, and the sickles bit into her flesh.

The cage rolled onto its side as she managed to bring down one of the wolf Nobodies. She stumbled and fell – and the chains wrapped around her, and a wolf bit down on her neck, holding her there. She gasped for air as the chains squeezed and she could hear Roxas's choked shouts. Darkness filled her vision and she tried to fight it, tried to swing Radiant Spirit despite the chains on her arms – but the darkness claimed her anyway.

* * *

She awoke to Roxas talking very quietly – and he was furious. And desperate. "You'll never live through this. I'll kill you."

Another voice answered, it's voice strangely light and cheerful. "Are you feeling it yet Roxas? The weakness of being so far away. He feels it too. He feels every injury you have."

"Karxal! They have entered the maze! Our maze has been entered," Another similar voice sang. "Come brother, and leave that half alone. The other half is more interesting."

She opened her eyes and stared at the person still standing in front of Roxas, and then at the other one in the doorway. With the same dark brown hair and eyes as silver as Riku's hair, she could tell the term "brother" was meant literally. "What do you want with us?"

They turned toward her, and it was the newcomer who answered, "It is not us. The Lost Company wants one of you. But one of them wants something else now – or at least at first. He wants that same one to hurt and be in agony – so he attacks the heart."

"I'm not Sora's heart. You should have grabbed Riku for that," Roxas spat.

"Karxal. Kamxis, Attend to your maze. I will make sure Sora gets the message about these two." Kairi stared as the two Nobodies scurried away, barely noticing the magical restraints on Roxas's wrists. Alcexan was standing in the doorway. He grinned at them, a flash of fangs. "Princess. And half of a Keyblade Master. Not even the important half."

Kairi wanted Radiant Spirit, but she would have to make do with her draggers. She pulled them out as Alcexan walked toward the immobile Roxas who was glaring for all he was worth. The tall Nobody ran a clawed hand across Roxas's face, leaving four scratches behind. "Does he feel this?"

"Leave him alone!" Kairi shouted, standing with daggers in her hands. She didn't let herself think why she wasn't in magical bindings as well, just thanked the Light for small favors.

Alcexan ignored her, and leaned forward. "He feels it all, doesn't he Roxas?"

Kairi lunged for him – and a clawed hand snatched her from the air. That orange gaze didn't even turn toward her as she was thrown into a wall. He didn't think her worth noticing. Her head hit the wall and she cried out – but she wouldn't be stopped. Her wounds hadn't been healed and she was weak, but she couldn't let him touch Roxas. _'Roxas and Sora shouldn't be apart,'_ Naminé murmured.

She tried to clear her head, shaking it to get the spots from her vision – just in time to stare in horror as Alcexan shifted so his body was pressed close to Roxas. "Can he feel this, Roxas? Your helplessness?"

The Nobody leaned forward and Kairi shuddered as his lips pressed against Roxas's. He wouldn't – none of their enemies had ever been so dishonorable. A second later, she realized it was more like none of their enemies had ever been so stupid. Roxas's wrists were held, but his feet were not. Alcexan double over as Roxas's knee went into his crotch, and then the blond Nobody head butted him. As Alcexan stumbled away Roxas sneered, "Can you feel _that_, asshole?"

There was a snarl and then Alcexan straightened. "We will continue this later, weaklings."

He strode – awkwardly – out of the room and Kairi itched to try and ram a dagger through his back. Roxas caught her eyes and shook his head. Reluctantly, she let the door close and then raised an eyebrow at Roxas. "I didn't know you could fight that dirty."

The Nobody actually grinned at her. "DiZ gave me memories full of fighting with Seifer. He never did that– but he always sneered at me for not fighting dirty enough. When all you have is a body and a soul, you take physical sensations very seriously – including pain."

"I've always thought boys wouldn't do that to each other," She admitted, carefully walking closer, aware that her vision was a little hazy.

"In that position, anyone would do that – there aren't a lot of choices. I can't call my Keyblades. Can't move my wrists." Roxas shrugged. Kairi smiled, mostly in relief that Alcexan hadn't been able to do anything worse, and then took a breath and closed her eyes.

"Cure," She said firmly, needing the word to augment her concentration. The green glow surrounded them both. She watched as many of her wounds healed at least partway – but the magic barely did a thing to Roxas. She stared at him, puzzled.

_'Roxas and Sora shouldn't be apart,'_ Naminé repeated, and Kairi stared at Roxas's face. He didn't look surprised.

"This – without Sora, you can't heal?" She asked, already knowing the answer.

He shrugged. "Before we merged, back when I was in the Organization, this didn't happen – but I hadn't been inside him, and we hadn't been torn apart in an unnatural way. Now I can feel him, and neither of us is healing right. And... I'm getting weaker. So is he. I can feel that. We're getting sick, Kairi."

She felt a chill run down her back. They were trapped in this room, and she couldn't get them out on her own. She didn't have the strength. For a moment, she could almost see Naminé tilting her head, as if she was in front of her, a secret smile on her face. _'Don't you?'_

She shook the strange feeling that her Nobody sensed more than she did off. "How... How bad is it?"

"Not bad right now. But it will be. We could die from this." Roxas was staring off past her for a second and she wished she could feel his heart – but his heart was far away, trying to find him. His attention drifted to her. He suddenly looked pensive and hesitant. "Can I talk to Naminé?"

She hadn't been expecting that request – but she guessed she should have. She smiled and closed her eyes. _'Naminé?'_

_'Yes. I would like to speak to him as well.'_ They switched, a slow but nearly painless process – she wondered why it was easier for them. Perhaps because Naminé always kept a piece of herself in the back of their heart. Naminé never seemed to be totally there.

"Roxas," Naminé greets, rising to move closer, touching his bruised face. "You don't look well."

"I don't feel well. We need to get out of here." Roxas was staring at her insistently. Naminé smiled and shook her head, leaning beside where he was chained to the wall.

"I cannot make a portal now anymore than you can, Roxas. I have no power. These captors have no hearts to crush." Her smiled faded slightly as she saw the confusion in his eyes. "I learned I could do that at Castle Oblivion. I learned many things there – but none of them matter now. There is only one person who can get us out of this."

Roxas stared for a moment, and she knew he wanted to ask about the Castle. But he let it drop and scoffed, "I'm not being rescued by Riku."

She smiled again and pressed a hand to her heart, feeling Kairi's nervousness and fear. "That is not who I spoke of. But you don't see either. I don't even understand it totally. But a Princess of Heart has power. Power they don't even understand. Six held back the darkness when it would have otherwise consumed all that exists."

He looked unconvinced, but didn't protest her trust in Kairi – which was good. She wasn't outspoken about much, but she would defend her Other until their joined death and beyond. Instead he asked, "How did you know about that?"

"I share Kairi's memories. She does not mind me looking, and she can look at mine anytime she wants. She does not, for the same reason you and Sora try not to look at each other's as much as possible, though you know most of his. She is afraid that if she sees my memories, and learns them, that I will no longer exist." Naminé felt Kairi stir and shivered in response to the fear that did rise. Kairi was so much more afraid of losing Naminé than Naminé was of disappearing.

"You don't think it can happen?" Roxas asked suspiciously. She sighed, knowing he wouldn't like the answer.

"What if it does happen? I've accepted that it's possible. Perhaps it is how it should be." She saw his eyes drop and the well-hidden despair rise. He wanted to always be around to talk to Sora, and hear Sora's voice. She added, in hopes of seeing his eyes brighten, "But think of who we have gained our determination from. Do you really think our will can just let us merge completely with them? We gathered our sense of self from them, and we can no more give it up than they can."

He did smile slightly then. "And you gained it from both. You're less likely to disappear into Kairi than I am into Sora."

She smiled in return, and didn't openly disagree – but privately she did. He wanted to stay around. She did as well, but while he was afraid of merging, she was ready for it. If one day she just drifted off and there was only Kairi, then that was what happened. She was not afraid of not existing. She even more than regular Nobodies shouldn't have existed. Kairi protested – but they both knew it was true. _'A Princess of Heart is not meant to have a Nobody. I am an abomination.'_

Kairi protested, _'You aren't! It was just because my heart had been inside Sora! It doesn't make it wrong!'_

_'All Nobodies are wrong,'_ She replied. It was true – they weren't meant to exist. But they did, now.

_'Just because you weren't meant to doesn't mean you don't have a right to – if a nobody isn't trying to destroy worlds or working in an evil organization, how would we even know they were a Nobody?'_ Kairi demanded. Naminé sighed, drawing a sharp look from Roxas.

_'A Nobody needs a place to belong – you will never find a Nobody just pretending to be normal. A person's heart would shy away from theirs. It's just natural – they don't have anything to connect to.'_ Naminé shook her head sadly and glanced up at Roxas's obvious cough.

"I apologize. I was explaining something to Kairi. While she's not as... as difficult as Sora with some subjects, with just a few... her heart is very big and she cares too much sometimes." She watched Roxas closely, and saw his lips twitch slightly into an almost-smile. He understood.

"The word you're looking for in Sora's case is dense – he took until Riku's birthday to start to realize that Riku loved him and that was only with both me and Kairi knocking him over the head with it," Roxas grumbled. There was something else there, she knew, something else about that night. She could see him fighting a smile at the memory, and wondered what had happened then. Something had changed between Roxas and Sora that night as well, not simply Riku and Sora.

Naminé, on impulse, leaned sideways and kissed Roxas's cheek. She rarely did something on impulse. She needed to analyze things sometimes. But most of the time when she did do those things, it turned out fine. Roxas stared at her, his cheeks turning slightly pink, and her lips quirked up in a shadow of Kairi's mischievous grin. "Don't look so startled. I just wanted to. I don't know that I'll ever get the chance to again."

"What do you mean?" He asked, and she shook her head. "Naminé?"

"Despite that I was made from two and not one, I am still the one more likely. Remember that – just incase," she answered without really giving anything away at all. And then she closed her eyes, and slipped back into her place in Kairi's heart.

Kairi opened her eyes and saw that Roxas's eyes had widened. "She's still there, right?"

"Yes," Kairi answered immediately, feeling for the spark of Naminé and keeping it in constant observation. "She's not even weakening – I don't even know why she said that."

Roxas's eyes were shadowed. "Naminé never says something for no reason."

"No, she doesn't," Kairi agreed, and they fell into a long, uncomfortable silence.

* * *

She eventually fell into a fitful sleep and awoke when the door opened. She was instantly on her feet and she saw Roxas tensing. The Nobody who came in was one of the brown haired ones, his silver eyes peering at them both. "I don't suppose you two would like some food?"

"Your not the one from before," Roxas said suspiciously. Kairi was frankly grateful – she couldn't tell them apart.

"I'm Kamxis. I create the mental maze, he creates the physical ones. I have to say. With you and your Other we both had a hand in it, and if it weren't for Wonderland's unique properties, we couldn't have pulled it off. Though I wish we had been doing it for other reasons than Alcexan and the Lost." He was unusually chatty for a Nobody and was balancing two trays in his hands as he looked at them eagerly.

"He can't eat with restraints on," She said, ignoring the rest for now.

"You'll have to feed him," The Nobody said cheerfully. If the door had still been open she would have jumped him with her daggers as he bent down and tried to get past or make him dispel the magic restraints – but Kamxis looked up at her, his silver eyes piercing and calm. She stayed where she was.

She moved their trays over closer to Roxas, who shook his head. She nodded in understanding. "We'll eat later."

The Nobody's face fell a little. "Oh. I see."

He looked so young and downtrodden at that moment that she had to ask something to make him look happy again. "Please – can you tell us about the Lost? The Lost Company, someone said?"

"Me. I – you really want to know?" he looked surprised. "I didn't think you'd care. You just have to destroy them, right? They're upsetting the worlds."

She sighed and glanced away, remembering her conversation with Naminé. "If they're upsetting the worlds and ruining the balance, then we do. It's our duty."

"What if some Nobody wasn't? What if they just acted like normal people?" Kamxis was staring at her hopefully. She heard Roxas scoff, but she met Kamxis's silver eyes squarely.

"We would leave them alone," she answered truthfully. Kamxis searched her face – and smile, an oddly peaceful look. For Nobodies that had no emotions, Kamxis certainly showed a lot.

"Well then, that's interesting. Ah – Well, never mind. The Lost Company is what it says. Those who are lost. The Nobodies. Not all of course – the oldest members are those that managed to avoid the Organization. The younger, some that popped up while the Organization was dying. There aren't that many core members – we are actually the youngest, and can't even be called core members, really. Our powers only work well and balanced when we're with each other. It's because we're twins, you see, and when we were changed into Nobodies – it's strange. Sometimes I think our souls are intertwined and we just can't be apart. But we were changed at the same time, and The Lost picked us up, but they don't really count us as part of them – it is because of that Alcexan asked us to do this." Kamxis settled on the floor, apparently deciding he had the right to be there now that she had asked him a question.

"That bastard. Even Nobody's are supposed to have honor," Roxas muttered and Kamxis looked at him, flushing a little.

"He wouldn't have done more you know – I don't think anyway. I'm not even sure he knows how in this body. He's used to the one he was born in, not his shape-shifted humanoid one. But he fits in better when he's shifted." Kamxis seemed to contemplate that, his eyes a bit blank and Kairi wondered how much of the conversation was an act, how many of those emotions he felt an echo or a remembrance of, and which ones he was faking.

Roxas actually looked surprised. "Shape shifted?"

Kamxis grinned. "Didn't know that, did you, Keyblade Master?"

A chill went down her back at the mocking voice, so unlike the friendly Kamxis from before. He seemed to notice her sudden fear, his eyes flicking to her and he shifted and looked away, almost looking apologetic. She reminded herself it was all a game to them, all fakery.

"No, I didn't," Roxas responded, his face and voice suddenly void of emotion. "Alcexan wouldn't give his secrets away to us – only to weaklings like yourselves."

The Nobody's back stiffened and his hands fisted. "If you weren't in restraints... But you are. So don't goad me. It's not amusing."

"And your amusement is obviously all that matters?" Roxas asked dryly.

"Look, I don't see why you're angry at me! I didn't know you would get sick. I told you, Karxal handles the physical things, and he's the one who told Alcexan! I gave you something you wanted!" The Nobody looked ready to stand again, his eyes practically glowing. She thought this might be close to real anger, or anger he believed was real. An echo of it at least.

"Something I wanted? Do you think I wanted to make him hurt? To cause problems with him and Riku? Do you?" Roxas kicked the wall in frustration, straining against his bonds.

"Do you regret your time with him?" Kamxis asked, very seriously. The question actually seemed to matter to him.

"No," Roxas responded after a long silence. "I was glad for the chance – but I won't thank you."

"I don't expect you to – now it is hurting you both. You are sickening, and he is as well. I truly wish it was not a side effect – but when something is not done naturally, there are always effects that we do not want." The Nobody smiled faintly, an almost bitter hint to it. "And to do it naturally would lose one of you – you just aren't meant to be apart, normally. Obviously you can be, since you both went a year apart, but it just isn't natural."

"I understand that. And I think Alcexan is a coward – he can't find Sora except weakened," Roxas sneered, and Kamxis looked at him, his silver eyes glinting oddly.

"He doesn't want a fight. He wants him to hurt – he might have even strayed from the original objective enough to want to kill him – or at least, half of him." It was a clear warning, and he even looked faintly regretful – if a Nobody could regret things. Naminé's memories said they could – she certainly had.

"Kamxis! I need your help! What am I supposed to do when they go _through_ the stone walls?" Karxal sounded a mix between excited and angry. And definitely shocked. Kamxis looked shocked, and Kairi giggled at him as he bounded out of the room. She tried to keep it in, but her eyes met Roxas's smirking face and they both burst into laughter.

"That's definitely Sora. Even weakened, if there's something in his way, he doesn't go around – he goes through it." They grinned for a while, but Roxas's faded first, and he was tense – and paler. She hadn't noticed before but now she went forward and she pressed a hand to his forehead and cheek, ignoring the jerk of his head. He was warm – very warm.

She looked at him. "You should eat. You need your strength."

He glanced at the food, and at her, and she hoped that the trust Sora had for her somehow traveled to Roxas like Namine's trust of him did for her. Finally he nodded, letting his pride fall. "Feed me. He'll need all the strength I can give."

* * *

Hours later, Roxas was too sick, and Kairi couldn't handle it. Kamxis had been back once but said nothing, but looked at her, something in his eyes. He was bothered by her – by something about her. Then he had left, leaving nothing more of himself, not even more information.

"If only I knew Dispel. I saw that spell there, in one of the books," Kairi murmured, but she had been murmuring that. It was no use. She had tried it, and she didn't have the knowledge to make it work. Roxas just hung there on the wall now, his legs no longer holding him up. He was just slumped there, only half conscious. Cure wasn't working even a little - but it rarely did on sicknesses, and wouldn't work at all on him anymore. She didn't want to imagine what Sora was going through.

Naminé had gone silent, but Kairi could feel the worry in that part of her. They felt the same, but she could still feel the difference – if barely. They worried for both boys, and for Riku who might not have any idea what was going on. She glanced up as the door opened, and saw familiar brown hair and silver eyes – but despite their alike appearance, she knew this was Karxal. "So. Alcexan won't have much to do to finish his other half off. He won't even put up a struggle. Disappointing – my brother thought you would both survive. He even pleads for your life to us, you know. My twin must see something interesting in you, Princess. Even with a heart he was never this soft."

He smiled at her, but there was nothing of his brother there. It was cold and cruel and she panicked when he stepped toward Roxas. She dashed forward; trying to use all the skills she had learned the past few months to good use. They made mazes, apparently – but Kamxis had said his brother was the physical one and though her dagger managed to sink into his arm a second later she was flying against the wall – and though his hand was outstretched, he was not holding her there. There was a pressure against her throat and she realized that Kamxis might not have seen his brother's powers as mental, but it was his mind holding her now. She clawed and her throat and heard Roxas shifting, trying to gain enough energy to fight.

She couldn't get him off, and eventually she could see blackness stretching forth. Her heart was failing and she heard the daggers fall to the ground as a distant sound pinging in her ears.

Someone cried out something, a yell of anger, and then the force on her throat was gone. She coughed and tried to inhale the air, failing for a few minutes. As the air rushed back in, her heart started beating fast – and she could feel it. More than the physical, she could feel the connections. She could feel Roxas, and through him Sora – and she could feel Riku, her connections to them both strong. But her and Sora – it was strong and different, and suddenly she understood. She grasped the connections, to both of them. Through Riku, there was her Keyblade – and through Sora, she grasped the power she needed. The power she had gained when their hearts had been together. She found it in herself, why she could wield it.

Now she called it, and Radiant Spirit appeared as if there had never been trouble at all. She lifted her head, still breathing hard, and saw that the two twins were arguing, Kamxis waving toward her, his voice the more calm, while Karxal was the one who looked angrier, glaring and clenching a fist.

"She tried to kill me!" Karxal was screaming. She stood on unsteady feet.

"You did try to kill her friend, she does have protective instincts," Kamxis pointed out reasonably. Kairi staggered a few steps toward Karxal.

"He's only half of her friend, she – Ugh." Karxal blinked and she stared in horrified fascination as darkness began to flicker off of him. Radiant Spirit was in his throat – though most of it. Kairi pulled it out and stepped back a few steps, staring as Kamxis lunged forward.

"Brother?" Kamxis whispered. "Karxal?"

Kairi decided it was time to get out before Kamxis was over his shock. She bolted toward Roxas, and Radiant Spirit sparkled, the flowers glowing as it hit the restraints – and broke them. The power hummed through her as she caught Roxas. She tried to pull him toward the door – and the weight was suddenly taken from her.

"I'll take him from here, Princess," A familiar voice purred. She looked up into Alcexan's eyes and froze. Wolf Nobodies snapped at his heels, separating her from him, and Roxas dangled in his arms. The blond Nobody was struggling, but to no avail – Bond of Flames briefly flashed into his hand, but he barely had the strength to swing it and Alcexan knocked it to one side.

Alcexan began to move away – and she lunged for them. She couldn't let him take Roxas. The boy was too far gone to defend himself. Alcexan laughed and the wolf Nobodies flung themselves onto her as he disappeared out the door – and it shut behind him.

She swung Radiant Spirit and continued swinging it even when she fell and teeth were tearing into her arms and legs. She could feel the blood soaking her clothes as claws ripped her outfit. She had tried – but she wasn't strong enough. Radiant Spirit couldn't move everywhere, and she cried out as jaws snapped down on her wrist crushing the bones. Radiant Spirit dropped and the Nobodies surged onto her.

For the first time she really believed she would die, kicking and throwing spells, and totally in vain. She hadn't been able to save him. She had failed, but at least she would take as many of them with her as possible. Just as a wolf went for her throat, a sickle and chain weapon came out of nowhere. The Nobodies were killed or run off swiftly and then Kamxis stood in front of her. His voice was oddly neutral. "Get up, Princess. Alcexan has much to pay for."

"I... Your brother..." She managed to protest. She knew she should just accept it, but guilt was eating at her.

"He was my brother, my twin, but I can do without him – and while our powers were amplified, I still have my own power. I do not blame you for his death; you were defending yourself and your friend. I look to the original cause – don't misunderstand me. All of this is to forward my own goals. But my goals do not counter yours, and my brother was holding him back – the echoes of my caring in life kept me from leaving him. Now only one thing could stop me from my simple goals – and so our goal is the same." Kamxis turned toward her and held out a hand. His face briefly had a smile, a little odd, but it wasn't wrong – it was even pleasant. "Get up, Kairi. Don't you want to save your friend?"

She blinked and gazed at him, but the choice was clear. She took his hand, and he pulled her up.

* * *

End Part 18. I know some of this is confusing. Some parts – Sora and Riku's – will be backtracked and explained next chapter. Other parts may need to wait until Kairi's next chapter. Besides that, look for a new story entry with Vagabonds related side stories soon.


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything Disney.

* * *

Chapter Nineteen

"Roxas! Kairi!" The scream came from Sora's throat and Riku whirled around from killing one Nobody to find that Kairi was nowhere in sight. Sora must have seen where they went by the way the boy had gone berserk and Riku fought furiously to get back to his side.

Before they knew it, the Nobodies that had attacked them were dead. Sora was panting hard, and his eyes were distant. Then he turned and began to stalk off. "They're this way."

Riku didn't need to ask how he knew. Roxas had been taken – and Riku would bet Sora could track Roxas across the universe, never mind just across part of the world. Even when a dark portal had taken him. He gritted his teeth and reminded himself that with the bracelet, Sora could do the same to him, and would. Just as he had done the same. He followed Sora swiftly, watching the brunet.

He had to admit he had been acting a little jealous, and he had said some things he shouldn't have – but Roxas got under his skin. He had never seen before exactly what was going on – but with Roxas out, he understood suddenly why the Nobody seemed jealous sometimes of his and Sora's relationship. It made him angry, and nervous. What if Roxas had never joined with Sora? They hadn't been worse off without each other then. There had been no side effects like this time, where they couldn't use magic as well as before and Sora couldn't transform.

Logically he knew Sora didn't see Roxas like that and even that Roxas wasn't trying to do anything to harm their relationship – but logic had no part in jealousy and he watched his boyfriend with dark, thoughtful eyes as his mind turned over the what-ifs. Sora loved him – but he loved Roxas too. Just not the same way – but if Roxas hadn't been a part of him, would it have been different?

Without warning Sora stopped, took a glance at his bracelet which was flashing a variety of colors, and turned around, staring at him. "Riku, I wouldn't betray you, ever."

Riku paused and stared at Sora and gave him a strained smile. "I know. We can't stop here, we have to rescue Kairi. And Roxas."

He quickly strode off, hoping Sora would drop it. No such luck. Instead he just matched paces with him. "Than why are you jealous of Roxas? I don't even like him like that! He's my friend, my Nobody, but I'm not in love with him."

He didn't really know how to answer. So he avoided Sora's eyes. "How do you know I'm jealous?"

Sora held up the bracelet. "I can see it... and feel it a little."

The bracelet glimmered yellow, green, and orange. Riku guessed it was somehow supposed to reflect his emotions for Sora, since he had used his own the same way. But for Sora to actually be feeling them a little – it was like finding Sora through the bracelet. Something new and different. He tried it himself, trying to see if there were emotions that didn't fit. He found nothing. "I can't feel you."

"That's not the point, Riku," Sora said, the exasperation clear in his voice. Riku shifted uneasily and avoided his boyfriend's eyes. He didn't really have a good reason to be jealous. He knew that, and under Sora's demanding eyes, he could only walk on and be silent. He just didn't know how to explain it.

The brunet let out a frustrated sigh and moved toward him, bumping their shoulders together. "Just try to trust me."

"I do!" Riku protested. Sora didn't look at him, walking forward, but his hands tightened into curled fists, and there was a flash of emotion across his face that Riku didn't understand. But the boy said nothing.

He was about to reach for him, get him to say what was in his head – even if it wasn't the time – but was interrupted as the ground began to rumble. The ground under his feet heaved upward and he felt himself falling – only to be grabbed by familiar arms. He felt Sora jump and the heaving earth beneath them fell away as they jumped up and hovered there, slowly falling back toward the quaking ground.

"Natural?" Sora asked, but he sounded doubtful. And as the earth began to reshape around them, making walls a hundred feet or more high and dirt showered down around them, Riku twisted around in his boyfriend's arms and raised an eyebrow. That question had now become obsolete.

They settled down to a changed land and his aqua eyes swept over the walls of dirt, stone, and plants. Experimentally, he raised a hand, calling a dark aura against then. The ball hit the dirt – and did nothing. They were walls now, but they weren't living, and dark aura didn't do so well against inanimate objects. The wall was to their left, and to their right – but where they stood was free for a few feet in either direction. Like a doorway. And as stones and dirt piled in over the top, vines being flung every which way to hold them up, he glanced at Sora. "I'm guessing they're straight through here."

"Yeah," Sora answered, staring at the walls – the _maze_ – that had just popped out of nowhere. Riku had to admit, that was an interesting talent – to move things. What kind of sense or element was that? Then again, what kind of element had Zexion's been? Or Saïx's? And their more recent enemies had been based off the senses. Riku brushed his bangs away from his eyes and felt his worry grow. They wanted more time with their friends – they wanted more time to do who knew what with Kairi – and Roxas.

He glanced at Sora, and found his gaze met. They nodded at each other and stepped inside. What was one maze against two Keyblade Wielders?

* * *

It was nightfall, and Riku stared at Sora sleeping fitfully, injuries all light, but clear to Riku. He couldn't even see them well in the darkness. There was a little light here and there from strange plants and Wonderland bugs. But all in all the whole place was dark – but Riku knew it was night now. He could just tell sometimes, and Sora could too, he knew he could. That was why he had insisted on a rest. That, and because Sora had begun to get tired easily all of a sudden. And he wasn't healing.

"Too far... I'm trying... Sorry..." Sora murmured, and Riku frowned, lifting a hand toward him to calm his sleep. But he stopped, pausing. There was something familiar about the way Sora was talking. He was asleep – but there was one person, or at least one non-person that Sora could talk to anytime, usually. But if it was Roxas, what was Sora, apologizing for?

"... Kairi? ...you, promise..." Riku slipped closer at the low murmurs, trying to hear more – but he was mumbling the sleeping thoughts they were trading and he heard nothing more. He grumbled mentally, but simply shifted closer to his boyfriend, feeling him shiver. He frowned. It was cool, and Riku shivered a little too – but Sora seemed to be feeling the cold more. They had run into various battles – and now Sora was getting sick. That was the only thing Riku could call it. Cure and Potions didn't heal his injuries, and he was weakening. Riku knew what was behind this sickness, and it made his heart constrict to know there was nothing he could do about it right now.

He shifted until he was laying against Sora, sharing as much body heat as he could through clothes – and protecting him from the initial attacks if Heartless or Nobodies found them. There camping place for a few hours of rest wasn't that far from the larger paths of the maze, it was just a small dead end section that looked to have some plants a bit more comfortable than most. They couldn't even hope for a full night's sleep – Riku didn't dare allow them one. Not with Sora weakening from his distance between Roxas. Funny that he had been fuming about how close they were earlier. Now he would have gladly thrown Sora at him, if only so he stayed healthy. All of his musings had become moot. It shouldn't have bothered them anyway – Roxas was a part of Sora, in the end. An odd part that didn't fit, and was more like his own self... but still technically a part. There was nothing to be jealous over, and thinking about if Sora and Roxas weren't so connected was pointless.

He felt Sora stir and turn in his arms. "I had a dream..."

"About Roxas? Or with him?" Riku pushed when Sora trailed off. He drew his head back a little to catch Sora biting at his lower lip in clear worry. "What's wrong?"

"I can't think at him awake. They're blocking us or something. I can still feel him though. He's getting sick too. We stopped because someone was coming in – he thinks Kairi's waking up too. She was knocked unconscious." Sora briefly burrowed his head into his chest and that made Riku worry all the more. Things couldn't be good if Sora looked like he desperately needed all the comfort he could get – even though they didn't have the time.

"Hey," he said softly, and kissed Sora's bitten lips when the boy raised his head to look up. The kiss was supposed to be brief and comforting but Sora's desperate edge was there and Riku gave in, fisting hands in Sora's clothes and hair and not surprised when Sora shifted them to straddle his waist. But he jerked his head away. "Not here, not now. We don't have the time."

He saw Sora freeze and as a large bug half as big as them crawled by, glowing brightly, he could see the guilt the encompassed his eyes. "Sora, I don't mean – "

"No, I'm being irresponsible. Thank you." Sora's voice was oddly detached and as he got up Riku could only stare at him. Sora _never_ sounded detached. And he couldn't think of a thing to make him sound like himself. One of his best friends and his Nobody had been trapped, kidnapped – and his own boyfriend had just torn away the comfort he needed. He knew he had needed to turn away – but it didn't have to hurt so damn much.

He slowly rose to his feet, seeing Sora walking off slowly, and followed along almost hesitantly. He didn't even know if he was welcome. Was Sora angry? He glanced at the bracelet on his wrist, but there was no red that usually meant anger. Some orange, and a lot of gray. And flickers of purple, which Riku had seen a few times – and the meaning made heat rise to his cheeks. He had figured out what purple meant, and that gray had to do with worrying - but orange was stranger. It was something he couldn't quite figure out.

"I'm not angry. You were right," Sora said quietly, stopping in his tracks. Riku had forgotten about that new aspect of the bracelets. Riku didn't hurry, not wanting to rush. Instead he just fell into step and they began to walk forward.

Before Riku could reply, another voice, feminine and silky, interrupted. "Yes, this isn't exactly the best place to mate. I do think the one with the long fur was correct. But I can see why you would want him. He is the prettiest male human I have ever seen."

Both boys stopped, and stared around. The voice came again. "Down here, you silly humans."

They both slowly looked down to see a long bodied cat with red fur and sparkling eyes. "I'm Dina."

He stared at the cat who was looking amused, eyes slitted and tail gently twitching. He realized both their mouths had come open and closed his, collecting himself, and preventing himself from making a stupid comment. This was Wonderland.

Sora, however, didn't seem as inclined to keep face. "You _talk_?"

"I do now. Since coming to Wonderland – it's nice. It means I can advise Alice. Or I could before those hooligans kidnapped me." She sniffed and lifted a paw up to lick at it disdainfully. "And they were only using me for _bait_ of all things."

"Bait. For us," Riku replied, his stomach sinking. "Or at least for Sora."

"Yes, for Sora. They barely mentioned you or the girl. Just you." She turned to Sora. "You messed his eye up. He wants revenge."

"Alcexan?" Riku asked, surprised. He stared at Sora – but he didn't look surprised. He wondered if Sora had known from Roxas - or he just wasn't surprised that the Nobody had followed them here. Come to think of it, considering how crazy Alcexan seemed (and considering how insane a few of the Organization had been, that was quite insane) he really shouldn't have been surprised either.

His boyfriend nodded and looked at the cat. "Do you know the way through the maze?"

Dina stopped, and tilted her head. "No."

Riku rolled his eyes. "Why are you here then?"

She half closed her eyes, and he could tell by the tone of her voice she was laughing at him. "Because I'm sick of running from Heartless, you silly boy."

It made sense – in a selfish sort of way. But it wasn't like they could leave the defenseless cat there, despite the fact she was only using them for protection. Maybe once Riku would have – but Sora never would, and Riku picked the cat up and placed her on his shoulder. "Can you stay there without me holding you?"

"Of course. Cats have perfect balance, and your shoulders are broad, while I am small. This will do fine," Dina replied, and began to purr in his ear. It was oddly soothing and Riku couldn't help but relax a little. Sora snickered and he was reminded that Sora could feel him now. He glared straight ahead as Sora gave him a quick grin.

"Just remember to jump off when we get into fights. Riku can't look out for you then," Sora cautioned, and the cat stopped purring as they began to walk.

"Don't worry, Keyblade Master, I will not endanger you or your mate," She replied, and by the mischievous tone, she was definitely trying to embarrass them. By the blush rising on Sora's cheeks, it was working.

Riku swallowed and said the first thing he could think of. "We're not... mates. At least, mates indicates... um..."

Panicked as the cat extended her neck and body to look him in the eye, he looked over at Sora, whose eyes were wide and his face red. "Don't look at me! Let's just hurry and find Kairi and Roxas!"

With that, Sora sprinted away, and Riku would have felt outraged if it weren't for the fact he felt like doing the same thing. But the cat was staring at him in evident innocent curiosity and he felt like strangling the deceptive feline.

* * *

Hours later, Sora was gasping after a battle, and on one knee. Riku had no idea what to do, but the Nobodies and Heartless were coming in droves now. Sora groaned, "Roxas is getting weaker. We need to do something. Now."

"I would if I knew _what_ to do," Riku ground out trying to be annoyed. But it was better than being panicked, the other reaction he wanted. Sora had scratches and wounds everywhere and they just weren't _healing_. He would have carried the boy if he knew where they were going – but he didn't, they had nowhere to go, and all he could do was look at Sora through shadowed aqua eyes. He helped his boyfriend to his feet, and kept himself steady when Sora leaned against him heavily. The younger boy panted and he shut his eyes against the world, wishing that it didn't feel like his boyfriend was dying in his arms.

Then Sora shoved away from him, eyes glittering strangely. "If we wait any longer I won't be able to help."

Not one to mince words, Riku said bluntly, "You can't help much _now._"

"Yeah? Maybe this will." It was only the warning he had before Sora took a stance facing the closest wall. Something in his mind tugged at his memories. This was familiar. This was very, insanely, familiar.

It was when Sora's feet left the ground, charging lightning fast at the wall that he remembered the World That Never Was and the buildings that had charged up in their way. He also remembered how Sora had dealt with them and he cursed as Sora went _through_ the wall, leaving only rubble in his wake.

"Couldn't let me do that," he muttered to himself. "No, he has to do it himself."

He had forgotten the cat's presence, safely clinging to his shoulder. "I doubt he was thinking much at all. He wanted to go that way, and that way he went."

He scowled, but lightly jumped from rubble pile to rubble pile, barely taking the time to swing Slender Thorn at a few Heartless racing around. He grew worried as he saw more piles of rubble, but no Sora. If this wasn't a waste of the energy Sora desperately needed, he didn't know what was.

The piles turned in another direction suddenly and he followed those too, knowing Sora's imprint when he saw it. Parts of the wall missing – there wasn't much that could do that besides Sora. Then the rubble stopped – and there was no Sora.

He paused just for a second in fear, but it was an instant where he wasn't paying attention, and even Dina's sudden cry in his ear was warning too late. Wolves, more savage than real ones were jumped on him, their Nobody emblems practically glowing on their chests. But he was used to fighting these, and those he cried out in sudden pain when the first ones managed to dig into skin, they were quickly fended off – but when the new Nobodies came, those he wasn't used to.

It only took one to cage him in with wolf Nobodies, they able to get out and in, but he was only able to shift around. He was being attacked from above with the curved metal, and from all around by the wolves. Frustration, rather than panic, was growing. He needed to find Sora. "You think this is enough?"

It was almost a hiss and he felt them pause just slightly, as if listening and wondering curiously what he could mean. That frozen moment was all he needed, dark auras flying everywhere and he moving fluidly in the cage, striking and dashing to the next. It was a small space, but in this case it worked for him. The Keyblade practically shone in his hand as with all of them looking stunned, he spun the Keyblade in a circle, smirking smugly as it lit up with silver light. Instead of slamming it into the ground, he jumped straight up, and the Keyblade took him through the Nobody, and then back down to slam into a pack of wolf Nobodies with a burst of energy rippling away in a circle.

Sora wasn't the only one who could pull flashy but powerful moves out of nowhere. His grin was close to feral, a stretching of his lips to bare white teeth. The leftover Nobodies were all of the Spider Cage variety, and were scuttling away. That was fine with him – if they weren't using dark portals then their prey was nearby, and that meant Sora was nearby.

"That was... interesting," Dina said faintly as he ran after them, leaping over fallen pieces of the wall, his eyes only on the target. He grinned, feeling the blood rushing happily in his veins. He didn't respond, just glad to finally have an enemy in front of him that he could take his out frustrations on. Not that there hadn't been enemies before - but then he had been guarding Sora as well and Sora had ended up pounding on them more than he did.

He was worried, but he was also looking forward to destroying the things trying to hurt his boyfriend. The two Spider Cages paused and he took an opportunity to leap from the ground onto one's back, wrapping his legs around it as Slender Thorn cut through its neck. He dropped to the ground and rolled out of the way as the other tried to skewer him with one sharp pointy leg.

He wasn't as fast on his feet as Sora, and winced as a leg managed to catch him in his side as he ran toward the Nobody. He ignored the pain and the blood he could feel beginning to stream out of the wound. Focused on the Nobody, he barely felt it.

It lifted a leg up and he took the chance, sliding underneath the leg and directly below the body hanging in the air, suspended from the legs. While he had the chance, he gripped another leg and pulled roughly, smirking as it crashed down onto the ground. His feet pushed against the ground as he stretched into the last attack and jumped, Slender Thorn crushing the Nobody's throat as he landed. He watched with a faint smirk on his face as it faded away. This was what they got for messing with the people he loved.

There wasn't time to gloat though. He was still missing Sora, and he headed in the direction the Spider Cages had tried to shuffle in before he had killed them all. Some part of him – a part that if he thought about it, was connected to the bracelet – tugged him on a different way when they came to a corner. He turned it, and found a man standing there, with an unconscious Sora at his feet. His lips curled into a snarl, but the man held up a hand. "I simply stopped him from ruining the maze anymore. My brother was getting terribly angry, and was about to do something foolhardy. Alcexan wouldn't want the boy dead yet – he wants him in pain."

The man's eyes were silver when he looked up at Riku. "If it helps, your friend Kairi is in relatively good health."

"Relative to what? Sora and Roxas? That's not exactly the best comparison," Riku snapped, worry hidden beneath the rage boiling in his body, giving him new strength. He tightened his grip on Slender Thorn and wondered if it would endanger Sora if he attacked.

"Anyone would be in good health compared to those two. Even the dying – but I suppose that's what you're letting him do, isn't it? Die?" The words were mild, as if they were talking only of the weather. Riku lunged for him, somehow unsurprised when the man smoothly dodged. "I did not mean to offend – I simply wondered why you did not use the clues."

"There were no clues, not-man," Dina spoke from the ground where she was nuzzling Sora, trying to wake him.

The Nobody actually looked faintly puzzled. "You did not see them? I apologize. I thought they were obvious. I shall go then and leave you to your friend. I would suggest you hurry though – Alcexan won't keep forever."

Riku eyed the man as a dark portal opened up behind him, and the Nobody paused as he entered, saying thoughtfully, "Actually, he might. But Sora won't, will he?"

Despite the casual tone, Riku had no doubts if he attacked that the Nobody would expect it. He forced himself to watch and only watch as the Nobody disappeared into the darkness. Then he savagely grabbed one of the glowing bugs hanging on the wall and moved it closer to Sora. The boy was more injured than before, bleeding from more minor wounds and bruises seeming to cover every inch of him.

Cursing, he picked his boyfriend up, ignoring when even unconscious there was a shifting that said he was in pain. Better to be in pain than to be dead. Riku walked back towards the nearest cross section of the maze, Sora in his arms and Dina on his shoulders, and he began to look for clues.

* * *

He found the opening almost be chance, stumbling over a root in the darkness. Where there should have been a wall there was nothing and he went sprawling, both Dina and Sora flying away from him. The cat yowled in protest and he snarled, "Shut up! Do you want to get caught?"

What patience he usually had was almost gone by now and Dina seemed to sense it by the abrupt way she suddenly shut her mouth, only mewing to let him no where she was. Carefully he picked his way over to her, relieved when he reached down and felt Sora's too-warm skin as well. "Thanks, Dina."

"You're welcome," She purred. "It's much darker in here. I thought you could use the help finding him."

Carefully Riku picked Sora up again, feeling his way to the boy's midsection. While he had been carrying him in his arms before, this was a secret passageway – or so he hoped - and he might need to fight. Shrugging a little, he hefted Sora's lighter frame over his shoulder. Better to be practical than worry about anything else. Hopefully this wouldn't injure the boy more. He still seemed too warm to him, and he bet his boyfriend had a fever.

He kept on hand up and steadying Sora, and the other reaching carefully out to the wall. Dina pressed against his ankle briefly before whispering, "I'll go on ahead – my senses are much better than the ones you silly humans have."

He didn't have time to retort before the feeling was away and he was left in what seemed to be almost complete darkness the further he went in. Once the light from the bugs in the maze vanished, there was nothing except the cold feeling of the wall beside him. He just hoped Heartless didn't attack.

Despite his thoughts, none did. Usually something would have jinxed them by now, and he could only hope grimly that his luck continued. There was no warmth here, besides Sora, and no light.

Step after step brought no reprieve, and he had to doubt if there was an end to it all. An end that didn't include Sora simply wasting away, torn apart from the inside with his heart simply stopping. He could imagine it happening clearly, the too-warm feeling on his shoulder suddenly beginning to slowly cool as the heartbeat he could feel through the layers of cloth stopped and never started again.

And another part knew this was somehow his fault. If he had not been acting jealous, maybe Roxas would have stayed closer. Maybe there would have been no chance of Roxas getting kidnapped, and Sora would be healthy and battling his way with Roxas and Riku to get to Kairi. That set up was oddly familiar – Sora was always wanting to rescue Kairi. She hadn't needed it the last time, not once had had gotten Saïx away from her and Naminé and given her the Keyblade.

But now she needed rescuing – when she shouldn't. If he had made sure they all stayed close, and hadn't let his damned jealousy get in the way, maybe none of them would have been taken. This was all his fault.

There was no Sora to tell him he was being stupid, and that he couldn't blame himself for everything. So he did blame himself, and waited almost hopefully for that familiar voice to rise up and scoff at him before hitting him on the head. Or kiss him on the lips – he much preferred that method of cheering up, personally.

No voice came, and he wallowed in guilt right up until there was the faintest tug, and the spark of force that wasn't his to call came to his hand – and disappeared. It had come in a flash of light, all gold and flowery. Yet, somehow Radiant Spirit had been called away. He couldn't help but feel a smirk come onto his lips, his guilt being buried under the smug pride he felt for his friend. Maybe Kairi didn't need help after all.

But he didn't want to miss the fight either.

He ran, holding Sora as steady as he could, and was shocked when the tunnel around him began to lighten. It hurt his eyes, but he ran on, blindly running until he smacked into something that echoed when he stumbled away from it. He blinked his eyes furiously until he could see in the bright light, but it wasn't until a familiar female voice chimed in from around his ankles that he recognized it. "It's a door. It's locked."

He stared at Dina helplessly. Locked? How could they get in then? They were stuck outside while Kairi and a probably unconscious Roxas battled for their lives. All because a door was locked!

Dina stared at him expectantly, and it slowly grew to disbelief. "You don't think well under pressure, do you?" she asked slowly, as if to a small child.

"What?" he asked, staring at her, and trying to be angry but coming up slightly panicked.

"Key. Blade. Keyblade. _Key_. Something in this word means something," Dina uttered, lengthening the word "Key" each time it was said.

Riku felt foolish. It was that time Sora was sick in Land of the Dragons all over again. He stepped back and called Slender Thorn, refusing to look the cat in the eye as the door unlocked with a click. He briefly banished the Keyblade as he opened the door. Once he was inside, he called it again, and ran a few steps before staring at the three hallways around him and cursing.

Then a voice from below his shoulder muttered hoarsely, "Left."

He almost dropped Sora in shock, but went left immediately, trying to peer over his shoulder and make sure there were no enemies at the same time. "Sora?"

"Huh? Oh. 'M fine. Feelin' great. World's wrong way up," Sora muttered, only slightly understandable. Riku's lips quirked into a smile as he ran, skidding side ways when he felt Sora shift and mutter a direction.

"You're on my shoulder. That's why things look funny," Riku explained, not bothering to hide his amusement.

"Oh. Nice view of your ass," Sora responded mildly, and Riku didn't know whether to take that as a sign of improvement or delirium. He decided on the former – he had a great ass.

He didn't need Sora's directions to know what room they were going into. There was a familiar voice screaming – not in fear, but in unadulterated rage. He heard Sora whisper, "That's our girl!" and had to agree with the statement wholeheartedly.

This door was locked too, but it proved little problem. Dina somehow managed to squirm in first and there was a yowl of an angry cat as Riku burst in, and he had to rock back a moment as the dainty, lady-like Dina attacked Alcexan, her tiny teeth pricking into his arm, and startling the Nobody enough for him to yell and jerk his arm away – thereby dropping the blond boy in his arms.

Ignoring everything else, Riku bolted for the unmoving form of Roxas, feeling Sora stir and come to life on his shoulder as they got closer – and then there was a wolf Nobody under his feet and he tripped, sprawling onto the ground and his grip on Sora falling away. But he was close enough, and the boy sprang clumsily toward his Nobody, even as Alcexan reached down to try and take Roxas away, a dark portal coming to life near them. But life had returned to Roxas as well, and he lunged for Sora.

The two boys collided and Kairi's voice rang out clearly. "Cure!"

The green light settled over them all. It wasn't as powerful as Sora's, but it was enough to have both boys looking up, most of Sora's injuries healed and the unnatural sickness gone the instant they had touched each other. Both rose to face Alcexan – and the Nobody snarled and leapt toward the dark portal.

Swearing, Riku was on his feet, trying to catch him. They would only have to sit through another plan of his later, possibly more dangerous and maybe this time it would succeed. But the other two were closer, and Kairi was sending out magic – none of it reached Alcexan as the portal closed behind him.

In a rare show of true rage, Sora cursed and punched the wall where Alcexan had disappeared. "You bastard!"

Roxas said nothing, but he put a hand on Sora's shoulder and Riku watched, puzzled as Sora first stiffened and then relaxed. They were speaking to each other, but he didn't know about what.

"Riku. I'm glad you got here in time," Kairi said, relieved. He let Sora and Roxas have a little bit of privacy and turned toward his friend.

"Me too," he started grimly. "Where are the other Nobodies? We saw a silver-eyed one and he spoke of a brother."

Kairi blinked, as if she hadn't expected the question and then covered it quickly with a smile. "They're dead. Both of them."

He frowned, but didn't say anything more. He could have sworn there had been one fighting when he came in – fighting against the wolf Nobodies milling about. But he decided it must have been a trick of his mind.

He settled his attention on Sora and Roxas – but there was only Sora, healthy and smiling a little sadly. He eyed the dark haired boy a moment, but left it alone. He couldn't say he understood completely, but he thought he did a little.

Instead he turned and picked up Dina, who was unconscious but otherwise seemed unhurt. "Come on. Let's return this one to Queen Alice."

* * *

They were forced to stay for a meal. Riku almost thought they would have to dress up again, but Alice seemed to think it was perfectly normal to appear in their normal clothes – after they had washed out the bloodstains. Or had them magicked out like Sora. His clothes barely needed any washing to be clean. In as best condition as their clothes could be without a needle and thread, they went to dinner and pretended for a few hours that they were just three friends having fun, and making new friends with Alice and her strange entourage.

Sora and Kairi were both safe, and the one time he had started to think too much about it all, he had been hit – by Kairi. Sora had laughed at his stunned expression, but she was making the best of her ability to call Radiant Spirit, and he was quick to lighten up when she had raised it again.

They avoided mentioning Roxas or asking what they had talked about – or how, exactly, they had merged back together. The food was strange, but after a few warnings they learned how to pick out the safest of them. And it was good.

"Hey, we still haven't found the way to unlock this world," Kairi said as they made their way to the transport circle up to gummi ship. They had all agreed silently to sleep their tonight. It was safe, it was theirs – and best of all, their beds were all close enough they could at anytime see or touch one another if the other two didn't mind leaning over him. He certainly didn't mind if they did.

When they paused, she cocked her head and looked toward the Mad Hatter's clearing, and the table that stood there. "I think it's in there."

As if to conjured up, suddenly there were Dusks surrounding them, and even a few Samurai and two Sorcerers. He hadn't seen the last two in a long time and he found himself fighting viciously back-to-back with both of his friends. Kairi's style didn't fit smoothly into theirs yet, but it did fit much better than it had before.

Light Flares raced his Dark Auras to see which killed more, and he had to grin as Kairi smirked when one of he balls of light beat out his dark aura for a killing shot. It wasn't a difficult fight, they were used to fighting these types, their muscles remembering better than their minds. He had parried a Samurai's thrust before he even realized it was making the move, and he slipped between two swaying Dusks to take them both out from behind.

In the end, it was a short fight, and he was a little suspicious, but as Kairi used the last of her magic in a Cure spell, he cautiously followed Sora, who was much more confident as Ultima swung out to point at a little teapot sitting on the table. Once again, Riku was left to see a faint hint of dark clouds and a distant click. Still lighter than his darker summoning when he did it.

"That takes care of that," Sora said, with an air of finality.

"Yes. It does." The voice was familiar and Riku felt a cold dread though he couldn't have said why. Alcexan's wolves were on them, just a bare few – but it was enough because none attacked Sora as he turned to slow to meet the Nobody, who was as fast as his wolves. They had been worn down slightly by the earlier Nobodies, and the way they had dealt with them had given Sora confidence. Riku expected Ultima and Oblivion to come up and strike Alcexan, and they did – but the Nobody didn't care, hurling himself onto the smaller form, claws flashing and disappearing.

Riku didn't understand why Sora suddenly froze until his eyes found where the claws had gone. They were coming out of Sora's back.

Ultima and Oblivion dropped to the ground and disappeared, but Riku couldn't hear or see them. He was moving, going through the wolf Nobodies like they were nothing and he met crazed orange eyes as he returned the favor given to Sora by smoothly putting his Keyblade's blood red thorns through the space where their hearts used to be and slashed down, cutting into lung. He didn't stop there, he couldn't stop as he slashed and thrust and in the end somehow dropped Slender Thorn to pummel the Nobody until he was no more.

Only when his fist hit empty air and all trace of Alcexan was gone did he turn, scrambling toward Sora. He couldn't see the wound at first, Kairi was in the way and he had to crawl around, not bothering to stand. Even then, one hand was pressed near Sora's stomach, the other trying to pour Elixirs down his throat. There was already another empty Elixir and Hi-potion nearby. Riku thrust his hands into his pockets, finding his own store of Potions and emptied it into Sora's mouth once Kairi's Elixir was gone. He watched anxiously, and jerked his gaze away as he heard a strange sound.

He felt cold as he realized Kairi was crying. She looked up at him with tear filled blue eyes and then down where her hands were pressed against the wound. "It won't stop bleeding. I don't know if it's healing. My magic's gone and none of us have had a wound this bad before. Riku, what do we do?"

Riku couldn't answer. He didn't know.

* * *

End Chapter. Don't kill me?


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

Author's Note: I blame Roxas for everything in this chapter. He started the "let's expand this section" thing, and then – this.

* * *

Chapter Twenty

Sora blinked fuzzily, but all he could see was white. The last thing he remembered was Alcexan, and a lot of pain – then nothing. Now he was in... white. That was all there was. He didn't see walls, really, it was more like a mist, and it was all white. Distracted from wondering how badly he had been injured, he stared around and wondered out loud, "Where am I?"

It was as he spoke that he realized there was something else wrong, and he stiffened, panicked, before a voice came from behind him to say, "You're in our mind."

A second or two passed as Sora stared around him and then turned to face Roxas. "I guess I really do have an empty head, huh?"

Roxas didn't find it funny. He was scowling, and it looked different than usual – considering Roxas was wearing the Organization coat, maybe it just looked more serious and less like his own pout. "Don't joke, Sora. We could die."

"W-what?" He hadn't expected that. He remembered Alcexan's claws flashing and pain - and then nothing. "Why?"

"I only see what you see. But I can feel our body better than you can." It was left unspoken that maybe that was because he had only been a body and a soul for over a year. The heart had been around, but not with him, so it had been a very loose connection.

Sora sat down heavily, stretching one leg in front of him while the other stayed bent and he placed his chin on it, gazing at Roxas as the other boy carefully sat down, his coat moving with him as if it was a part of him. Roxas glanced up. "It is."

The brunet looked down. "I know."

"There's no help on Wonderland, and they've probably used most of our healing supplies. We can only hope that Kairi's magic can keep us alive long enough." Roxas was angry, his face screwed up in frustration and his hands clenched by his side.

Sora eyed him and scooted closer. "So why is everything white?"

"Don't you care?" Roxas shouted, jumping to his feet. "We're dying, Sora!"

"Is there anything we can do?" Sora asked, feeling oddly calm.

His Nobody stared at him, and then shook his head. "No."

"Then I'm not going to worry about it," Sora proclaimed firmly. "So why's everything washed out?"

The other boy shrugged. "Whenever I imagined a place in our mind to stay, it was always white. I don't know why."

Sora wondered if it would be a good idea to ask him why Roxas had felt the need to create an imaginary place in their mind where he had an imaginary body – but he figured he knew the answer and Roxas wouldn't take kindly to him bringing it up. It did explain some things – why there was space in their heart and mind that felt like Roxas, and how that space disappeared when Roxas hid himself – he was letting go of the imaginary body he made. Seeing Roxas begin to glare at him he remembered nervously that Roxas could hear what he thought. "Especially when you're thinking it so loudly."

He swallowed. Though, if he thought about it, he wasn't really swallowing, was he? This was in his mind, this body wasn't real because he was dying out there and this was like a dream – "Stop that! Don't over think it or you'll disappear from here and it was hard enough to get you in here."

"Right." Shifting uncomfortably at the note of near panic beneath Roxas's stern words he asked, "So, can I change it? Do you mind?"

The blond blinked, as if surprised by the idea. Which, Sora knew, he was. But he tried not to focus on what Roxas was feeling – if he didn't feel them, it made the two of them more separate and he liked them separate. Roxas smiled, a small thing, just a twitch of his lips, but those familiar blue eyes had lit up. "Yeah. If you think you can, go ahead."

He had to think a moment, and decide what he wanted. For a moment he wanted to make the island beach – it was familiar and easy to make but... It just felt wrong now. But a beach, that was nice – and a paopu tree. He liked that too. Fine white sand, but a moon that was familiar to Roxas first and then him, but neither of them really liked the darkness, so maybe sunset was good, and then a few rocks to sit on – and they couldn't forget some fish and a few plants, not tropical in nature, mostly grass-like thing.

Sora didn't realize her had closed his eyes until he was opening them in tandem with Roxas. He quirked an eyebrow at Roxas, who was flushing slightly. "Thanks for the help."

"Sorry. You started doing it and I could feel it and I just – Sorry," Roxas nearly squeaked, his whole face red. Sora almost laughed but knew that would be a mistake. He smiled gently and reached out a hand toward Roxas's face, turning the other boy to look at him.

"I'm not mad. I thought it was neat. I like us working together." He realized after he stopped speaking that holding Roxas's face was a mistake. The blond was staring at him, the intent stare reminding him of their fight before he even knew who Roxas was. He had just been another Organization member – he hadn't even realized it was in their mind – but real as well.

Roxas leaned into the touch and Sora dropped his hand quickly. Roxas was still staring at him and had it been anyone else he would have turned away and tried to pass it off as nothing – but he couldn't lie to his Nobody. Roxas smiled, but it was twisted and his eyes dark, his voice bitter. "You should be mad. It would be easier sometimes if you weren't so damned friendly."

He really didn't want to have this conversation, but he made himself stay still, available for Roxas to rant at and talk to him – but the boy only sighed, and leaned forward. Sora froze, but suddenly knew Roxas wouldn't kiss him, wouldn't give him the opportunity to reject him. Instead he touched their foreheads together and muttered, "Let's spend some time on this beach of yours. Teach me how to fish with my hands?"

Smiling brightly, Sora leaned away, but grabbed Roxas's wrist. "Sure! Come on, you'll love it!"

Roxas was eyeing the bright moon in the sunset sky with amusement. "You know, I think our beach is a little messed up."

Coming out more seriously than he meant it, Sora replied, "So are we a bit."

Roxas stopped and Sora let his hand fall from his Nobody's wrist. He waited for Roxas to speak, but he didn't, walking by and stepping to the edge of the water. It splashed against his Organization issued boots and Sora came to stand beside him. He hesitated briefly before taking a glimpse at the thoughts running through his mind. Roxas was remembering Axel.

"Hey, you remember in Hades, that soul we felt?" Roxas asked suddenly. "Do you think the rest of their souls are there too?"

He wanted to answer yes, to give him hope – but he couldn't lie and what came out was, "He died in Betwixt and Between. I – I don't know if souls can... maybe there's an in-between underworld?"

Roxas sucked in a breath, and Sora knew that Roxas had never considered that, had been hoping somehow that maybe he could say his goodbyes to Axel someday if they found the right soul – and now the hope shattered and Sora felt it like it was making cuts in their heart and soul, cutting deep into Roxas as the boy just stayed absolutely still, and said nothing except a single word, more breath of released air than anything. "Oh."

"I – Roxas, I'm sorry. If I'd know you were there at the time, known what we could do I would have switched and – "

"I wasn't. Or, I was, but until the fight in The World That Never Was, we wouldn't have been able to switch or talk." Roxas's voice was flat, and Sora moved a way a few paces, leaving him alone.

The water felt a little cold, which was right, but the air didn't feel like anything despite the sunset sky and the bright moon. He made the air hotter, like it should be when someone went to the beach. Roxas's voice floated over to him. "I'm going to burn up with all this on."

"Change clothes then," Sora suggested with a grin as he did just that – red swimming trunks suddenly on him while the rest of his clothes disappeared. He raised a challenging eyebrow at his Nobody, who smirked, and suddenly was in gray swimming trunks.

"Gray? C'mon, Roxas, you can do better than that!" And suddenly Roxas's trunks were yellow, and Roxas yelped in outrage – and Sora's turned white.

That seemed to be the breaking point, because suddenly they were wrestling in the shallows of the water, their swimming trunks changing colors rapidly – and sometimes other clothes appeared as well. When Roxas ended up in a dress he paused and glared at his Other. "You are so gonna get it."

"But Miss Roxas, you just look so pretty to – ack!" Sora bolted as Roxas's clothes changed back to trunks and the boy sprang for him. Too late - he was pushed down and got a mouth full of salt water.

It wasn't really real, and they knew this – but it was fun to pretend, and Sora knew it didn't do any good to worry about it.

* * *

Sora was honestly surprised when he went to bed on the beach one "night" and didn't wake up on it. He wondered how long he had been out, and could feel Roxas's excitement in the back of his mind. _'You're awake. Truly awake. We both are. Sit up, let's see where we are.'_

Rolling his eyes at the order, Sora did, surprised when a thin blanket that had been placed on him slid down his bare chest and he saw bandages. It still hurt a little, but was mostly healed. Weird, that it wasn't healed all the way. Had Alcexan found someway to counteract that?

The bed's smooth sheets wrinkled as he slowly moved his legs sideways and stood up, clad only in boxers. The floor was cold as his bare feet touched down, but he didn't wince. His legs felt a little shaky, but he didn't fall. He kept a supporting hand on the bed and took a good look around.

He recognized the house. It was Leon's. That meant they were back in Radiant Garden. He was confused at first – but then it made sense. If he had been hurt badly, Aerith was the best healer they knew. His eyes continued roving about the room and he blinked as he spotted a figuring sleeping in a wooden chair. "Leon?"

He winced as he heard his own voice, weak, scratchy and hoarse – but it was enough to wake the man and gray eyes sprang open, a hand going for the Gunblade set beside the chair. Then he froze, and Sora smiled nervously. Leon rose slowly, his eyes studying him intently. Then the man took a few strides to his side and didn't say a thing, just put a hand on his head first, ruffling his spikes as if to make sure he was real.

Seconds later, to his surprise he was pulled gently against a hard body and Leon's voice hissed, "Idiot."

When Leon didn't say anything more, but continued to hold him still, he let himself lean against the man who had taught him what Heartless were, taught him to survive and looked out for him like a brother. He wrapped his own arms around Leon's back after a few moments and said sheepishly, "Sorry."

"Better be," Leon said gruffly, but the bite was taken out by the gentle hands on his back still holding him and Sora smiled. He guessed he must really have worried everyone if Leon was actually hugging him – sure, the man had come a long way and smiled a bit more, but touching? He _must _have nearly died.

Finally Leon twitched and his hands moved back a little and Sora took it as the appropriate time to let go and take a step back, asking the question now bothering him, "Where's everyone else?"

"If 'everyone' means Riku and Kairi, they're in the next room. They worried too much. We put them to bed." Now Leon sounded almost amused, but Sora was already making his wobbly way to the door.

He was hauled by with a sigh of exasperation. "In the morning."

"But – " Sora tried to protest. Leon shook his head and Sora sighed, understanding. He didn't really feel tired though. He pressed a hand to the bandages around his middle instead. "Why isn't it healed all the way?"

"Aerith will explain. Tomorrow." Leon was glaring pointedly at the bed. Sora rolled his eyes but went back to bed, laying down. He wasn't really tired – but he forced himself to relax and breathe evenly until the door clicked closed. Only then did he get up, as silently and carefully as he could, and crept toward the door.

Leaning his head against it, he didn't hear anything for a few minutes, and finally decided he was going to be left alone now that he had woken up. He opened the door – and came face to face with Cloud, whose hand was poised to grab the doorknob. The blond raised an eyebrow. Sora smiled sheepishly.

Cloud rolled his eyes, but tilted his head to one side and stepped back, glancing pointedly to the side. Sora took an unsteady step into the hallway, not surprised to feel Cloud suddenly holding his shoulder. He didn't shake it off, but took the few quick steps to the next door with Cloud supporting him.

When the door opened, he wasn't surprised to find Riku and Kairi's beds pushed together and the two of them nearly touching in their sleep. He forgot all about Cloud's presence as he closed the distance between their beds and the door. Looking down at them he sighed only half audibly at the clear signs of worry and stress on their faces even in sleep. Riku's hair was in disarray, cast over the pillow in messy tangles. He was curled up, and Sora frowned as he saw one hand was clenched around something.

He leaned over just enough to see the tips of familiar bloodied metal – Slender Thorn's keychain. "He's been holding it since they brought you here."

Sora almost jumped out of his skin. He had forgotten Cloud was there. He turned wide eyes toward the blond, who raised an eyebrow casually as he crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. "Are you gonna wake them up or what?"

Trying to glare, his lip curled outward into a pout. He shifted, legs brushing the edge of Riku's bed, and stared hard at his friends. Kairi's hair was in a similar state to Riku's, and she looked pale and drawn. And a little like she had lost weight – which was strange because he hadn't thought he'd been out that long, and Riku still looked the same. He was paler as well – but nothing compared to Kairi's sickly appearance. "What's wrong with her?"

"Overuse of magic." Simple, matter of the fact, but Sora had no idea what he was talking about. So he reached out and ran a hand down Riku's face gently. He would know – and he didn't want to wake Kairi if she was sick.

"Who's tha'?" Riku mumbled. Sora smiled, thought it was a little weird. Riku usually woke up right away. He must have been really tired. Sleepy aqua eyes focused on him. "Sora? What time is it?"

Lips curving into a smile, Sora leaned down and kissed him. He could tell the moment Riku came fully awake when the kiss changed from a gentle touch to lips suddenly pressing up none too gently, and hands pulling him down. He winced and pulled away as his bandage-clad stomach was pushed against the metal frame. Ignoring the pain, he grinned at Riku and softly said, "Hey, Riku."

"Sorry," Riku said, and Sora was stunned to see Riku had dropped his hands altogether back to the sheets and was clinging to the white fabric, not looking at him, mouth twisted into a bitter line and his expression radiating guilt. "I pulled you down and it hurt, I saw it did, and I couldn't stop Alcexan and I'm sorry."

It came out in a rush and Sora's lips twitched. He wanted to be amused, to laugh – but he couldn't. He just didn't feel it there, not when Riku was looking like he really was feeling guilty and blaming himself. "Riku, none of this was your fault."

"You say that. You always say that but it is. I should have put up a dark shield, or gotten you to Roxas faster before that – or just stopped Alcexan from going into the dark portal before that." Riku's voice edged closer to depressed than Sora had heard in a long time.

"And maybe I should have finished him off the first time I met him," Sora returned softly, leaning closer. "Maybe I should have turned faster or maybe I should have gotten to Roxas faster, before I was unconscious. If you want to get into the blame game, I've got more when it comes to Alcexan. It wasn't your fault. Now scoot over and lemme lay down. And tell me what happened to Kairi."

He was surprised when Riku actually did, sliding right to the edge of the bed, nearly onto Kairi's. It was a small space and Sora thanked his father and mother for the genetics that made him so scrawny. He still had to get right next to Riku and lean onto him, which wasn't any sort of hassle. Getting himself comfortable, one arm curled over Riku's chest and feeling his body heat seeping through the thin cloth between them he sighed happily. "So? You going to drop the guilt."

"No. I should have done something. And Kairi – Kairi overused her magic. I should have stopped her." Riku's voice was low, and Sora was wishing he dared chance a fight. He really wanted to hit Riku – which wasn't the best idea considering he was still injured.

Instead, he bit Riku's pajama clad shoulder and after the boy stiffened in shock, he let go and said, "Stop Kairi? She's as stubborn as either of us, sometimes more stubborn than both of us put together. If she was determined to do something, you couldn't have stopped her. You know that. And Alcexan hit me – so what? I'm alive. Is he?"

It was actually something he was anxious about. The Nobody had trailed them for too long, and if he could be hurt like this, so could the other two. And he knew what Alcexan had done to Roxas – and what he had insinuated he would do, just to hurt him. The kiss, the hint of more – no matter what Kamxis had said to Roxas about it, Sora didn't trust that the Nobody wouldn't do something worse to either of his friends just to hurt him

"He's dead. Very much so," Riku said, and there was a hint of smug amusement there, enough that Sora could figure out what had happened. Riku had been the one to do it. He relaxed fully, sighing into Riku's neck as he rested his head against the boy's broader shoulders. Wrapping an arm around Riku and throwing a leg over his, he squirmed a little until he felt perfectly comfortable and closed his eyes.

"What are you doing?" Riku asked, a little sharply.

Sora ignored the tone and replied contently, "Going to sleep. And so are you. We can talk more in the morning."

"Look – " Riku was interrupted by a shadow blocking the light from the hallway. Sora opened his eyes to slits to see a familiar blond head, blue eyes almost expressionless – but there was a faint hint of a smile on Cloud's lips.

"Sora's right. Go to sleep. It's my shift." Cloud brushed a hand over Riku's bangs, and Sora didn't even bother to hide his gaping jaw when Riku didn't do more than glare. Cloud chuckled and suddenly the hand was ruffling his own brown spikes. "Don't have nightmares."

It sounded like an order. Sora, curled over Riku, was perfectly happy to take that order as the door closed and darkness washed over them.

* * *

In the "morning" – which was actually early afternoon – he was still wrapped around Riku, Kairi was still asleep, and there were loud arguments coming from the hallway. Feeling grumpy that his sleep was interrupted he slipped off the bed, stomped over to the door, opened it, and glared sullenly out at the adults. "You're loud."

_'I think you spent too much time on the beach with me. Picking up my habits,_' Roxas mused, laughing in the back of his mind. Giggling, if Sora had to put a name for it. And as he thought that loudly, the laughter stopped and he felt Roxas grumbling in the back of his mind.

Four pairs of surprised eyes were on him – and Cloud's were beginning to look faintly amused as well. "Good afternoon."

Scowling, he rubbed at his eyes and glanced over his shoulder. The other two were still asleep, so he could forgive his four friends for being a little loud. He stepped into the hallway and closed the door, leaning back against it. "So what's up? What's going on?"

"Here," Cid said before anyone could get another word in, and shoved his black outfit onto him, metal clinking together in a grating melody. "Put these on and then talk to us. You have a big damn hole in your stomach, kid. You don't need to get sick as well."

He would have pointed out it wasn't _that_ cold – but he wasn't going to argue with them and he put the clothes on right then and there, feeling a little better with them on. He brushed his fingers against the fabric over his stomach. It felt as good as new – just like it always did. His eyes flicked around the four until Leon cleared his throat. "I found the needles and thread for it."

Since that had been the question he was about to ask, he shrugged and looked at them. "So, what's going on? How long have we been here? Why is Kairi sick?"

All three men turned to look at Aerith, who shook her head, eyes rolling and lips twitching into a smile as the three men unanimously and silently decided she would speak for them. "You've been here for about a week and a half. Riku and Kairi made it back here in record time."

"Nearly wrecked the ship doing it," Cid grumbled.

Cloud hissed, "And Sora would be dead if they hadn't."

Aerith's stare quelled the beginning of an argument and she continued, "Kairi and Riku had been keeping you alive on magic and Potions until then. They used up every thing they had. Riku conjured potions, and they both drank ethers until there was nothing left. But they made it in time – we bandaged you up and used everything we had to keep you alive. Kairi kept using magic, even though it wasn't working too well, because it was still working better than the potions. She collapsed yesterday afternoon. She was drawing out more magical energy than she had, and taking a little bit of her life force to do it each time."

Sora paled and was glad the door was behind him to keep him up. Aerith quickly continued, "She'll be fine, she didn't do any lasting harm. While you heal up all the way, I'll teach her more about magic. She needs more knowledge – you all do. Do you know why you're not healing?"

He shook his head, and she didn't look surprised. "Magic – and potions are magic in their own way – always has side affects. Most are obvious – fire you sometimes burn yourself, Blizzard and you find yourself unable to get warm. You have a good instinctual grasp on these things, so you probably barely feel side affects. Cure magic is different – any healing magic is. It's speeding up the body's natural healing process. This does two things – it puts foreign magic in your system, and it makes the body do something it wouldn't normally be able to do without more side affects. The problem is, you do this too much, and your body will refuse more. Not permanently – but the magic has to dissipate fully, and your body needs to remember how it normally works. So being healed so many times in one day made the magic less effective. Your own body was resisting the magic. It was too much at once."

Sora thought he got most of it. "What about potions? They don't work the same, do they?"

"No. They're magic, but of a different kind, made from natural magical products. Plants, mostly. You gain a slow tolerance to them instead. Unfortunately your body sees them as a virus, interrupting the natural order of things, and builds up it's own kind of immunity. Elixirs take much longer to build immunities up – those and hi-potions are the real reason you're alive. Kairi's magic helped a little as well since the time it took to gain back some magical energy was enough time for your body to lose a little resistance. Do you understand?" Aerith's green eyes were gentle, but her voice was firm. He wanted to squirm like a scolded child – but they'd never had time to learn this. They always had to be somewhere.

"Yeah. Um... So eventually potions won't work at all?" Sora asked, having to know.

"They'll be like a high class energy drink," Leon stated. "Cloud's at that point."

"So are you," Cloud pointed out.

Leon's lips curled into a bare smile. "You got there first. Potion junkie."

Ignoring the sudden staring match, Sora looked at Aerith. "So, what do we do?"

"Well, first of all, I train Kairi with her magic more – her Cure spell isn't as good as it could be yet, and hers will be even more powerful than yours when it reaches it's limit. Well, the limit of what I can teach. I sometimes wonder if the three of you have limits." Shaking her head with a fond smile on her lips, she continued, "You go see a few people around down about getting the moogles to carry X-Potions – they're the strongest type of potion publicly sold. I've never heard of anyone getting to the point where X-Potions don't work. Elixirs are the same way, but for some reason, it's actually harder to make a pure X-Potion. Riku should see what he can learn in the library. I'm afraid his magic is a little unconventional."

Sora grinned at that. Riku in general was unconventional – Sora's magic, powerful as it was, was downright ordinary compared to Kairi and Riku's. "But, um, what _now_?"

"Oh!" Aerith giggled. "Now, you come down and eat – we're going to have to watch what you eat until you're fully healed."

"I'm sure I've had worse," Sora proclaimed, his thoughts on eating raw animals and bugs in lion form – and grass in deer form. It had seemed so tasty at the time. As had the seaweed in Atlantica. Eating with Jack on the Black Pearl had not been tasty at all though. Ever. Nothing could be worse than that.

* * *

Ultima met the Gunblade strike for strike, blocking it every time. Leon raised an eyebrow. "Kairi said something interesting yesterday."

Sora was surprised that Leon would talk during a spar – he rarely did except correcting comments on his mistakes. Those came less and less, but weren't as rare as Sora wanted them to be. As had been pointed out. Riku's style was much more efficient and he was less likely to come to harm – but Sora's was likely to have more power in each stroke and slash. He just left himself open too often. "What about?"

They were making sure Sora was up to his normal strength before they gave him a clean bill of health. They hadn't used magic on him since he woke up until a week before, which had healed the rest of his wound right up. He still had a scar. Leon flicked the Gunblade toward his neck. Sora blocked and he twitched yearningly at the opening on Leon – but he couldn't move Ultima fast enough to take it.

"Why aren't you calling two?" Sudden startling questions used to make him paused. This time he continued with his strike – but Leon didn't block and he froze before Ultima could strike the man's middle, a little shaken. But Leon's gray eyes were demanding an answer and he backed off a step. Apparently this was more important than continuing the spar.

He had to think about it – but he didn't really have an answer. He shrugged. "I've always sparred with one."

In fact, usually he sparred with Kingdom Key. But they had insisted he spar with Ultima – and when Leon stared at him, waiting, he knew this would be insisted upon as well. He took a hand off Ultima to hold in front of him. He shifted Ultima automatically to the side so that Oblivion came up held defensively forward while Ultima was held back, ready to strike out with a full swing behind it.

Leon's lips widened into a familiar smirk and then the Gunblade lashed out. Sora caught it automatically but was surprised to realize Leon was going all out – and he was keeping up just fine. He had been for a while, sure, but usually it was a better run than this. With both Keyblades, it just wasn't the same. Then Leon jerked a foot toward him and he danced back, surprised. "You don't use the rest of your body enough. You defend with it, but you use your Keyblades as your only weapon. We're going to fix that.

"We?" Sora asked, dread filling his stomach.

"Yeah, we!" Two familiar voices popped up and he almost whimpered as he saw Tifa and Yuffie. Tifa was enormously strong – and Yuffie and Tifa were both fast. Had he been thinking a minute ago he needed a new sparring partner? Apparently "be careful what you wish for" really was a terrible thing.

"C'mon Sora, we won't hurt you," Tifa said, taking a position to his left.

Yuffie stood to his right. "Much."

"Go," Leon said, and it was his only warning before all three were swarming onto him. Tifa leapt for him and he dodged her fists, managing to bring up Ultima to block the Gunblade, and Oblivion sweeping away the shuriken thrown his way. But he didn't have time to contemplate because they were all gunning for him and he was twisting out of the way, forced to kick Leon away and unable to focus on one opponent – but it wasn't like he'd never been attacked on three sides before. Too bad he wasn't allowed to use magic.

But, if they wanted him to use the rest of his body more, he would. He bent almost double backward as a shuriken came toward him and rebounded off the Gunblade, Leon's movement pausing. Tifa's fist hit Ultima – and the instant the blade took the impact he banished it, catching Tifa by surprise as he managed to throw her over his shoulder – and had her keep pulling him after her until he was slammed into the wall. He shoved off with his feet, the little space all he needed as he rebounded off the wall, both Keyblades in evidence once more.

He avoided getting cornered again, and when Yuffie managed to trip him he kicked out to bring her down. There wasn't enough room to get in a full swing and with Leon's words fresh in his mind he elbowed her face as she came down and jumped up, above the two adults and landed behind Tifa, Keyblades slashing. She jumped away, but Oblivion's side caught her, making her stumble – and he was on her, blades pointed at her throat – and the Gunblade pointed at his. "Forget about me?"

"You're paying too much attention to me and Yuffie, just because we're faster, and new. Never underestimate the opponent you know," Tifa said as he groaned and let the Keyblades vanish. She grinned at him. "Now, step back and let's do it again."

* * *

After a few days of constant training with Tifa, Yuffie, and Leon – with Cloud joining in after the first day, and Aerith and Cid dropping by when they could – Sora had waved off sparring for the afternoon and had snuck into the library. Riku didn't talk much about what he was studying. Mostly, Sora thought this was because he didn't want them to see anything until it was absolutely perfect.

So instead of coming in by the front entrance, he climbed up to the top level and used the door in the side, and then crawled out onto the bookcases to watch his boyfriend.

From the looks of it, Riku was doing really well – and he was doing more than just medicine. Sora recognized the books by ones he had casually looked at once and slammed shut. That magic was too complicated in theory for him to understand. Enchantments on the items – like his clothes, though that was higher, more powerful magic than what Riku had there. More like what had been put on Kairi's clothes. Sora had to have Merlin help with that – but if Riku could learn how to do them, they wouldn't need to have anyone else help. They could be self-sufficient. Except for what the moogles did – but then... Why not? The moogles couldn't be everywhere, and someone had to learn how to do it.

Carefully sneaking down and out of Riku's sight, he did look for a few books – and quietly sighed. _'I don't think you're patient enough to learn that kind of magic. Maybe Kairi can do it.'_

_'Then what do I do?'_ Sora complained, feeling a little left behind. Except he could feel Roxas grinning in his mind.

_'Who says you need too? You have power, and you can sew.'_ Roxas didn't sound like he felt it was a big deal – but Sora wanted to help more.

_'Grow plants,'_ Roxas suggested, and Sora felt something in his gut twist as he remembered his mother and gardening with her, remember when she told him how wonderful he was doing with his little patch of garden. How long had it been since he had thought of her? How could he forget she had been missing?

_'Sora!'_ Roxas's sharp thought brought him out from that spiral quickly and he took a breath, shaking off the melancholy mood threatening to envelope him.

Focusing on what Roxas had said he asked, _'How will plants help?'_

_'You really need to listen and read more often. Potions and Ethers and all of their relatives are made from plants. Some can be conjured – and some can't. Ethers can't be conjured. Neither can Elixirs. Other things can probably be made only with plants. You like to garden. And maybe it won't be as useful on the journey – but Kairi's not likely going to have time to synthesize equipment, or Riku to enchant clothing much, either.'_ There was a pause and then Roxas added, sounding a little awed, _'You're thinking of the future, you know. Long term, what the three of you could do together. So is Riku, I bet. Kairi probably too. You never even think of what you would do if you were apart.'_

_'We never will be!'_ Sora stated firmly, climbing back up to the top level by jumping up onto the bookcases and shimmying over to the table on the upper level.

_'Really? What if Kairi falls in love? With someone other than you two. What then?'_ Roxas asked.

Sora stilled in his search for books and bit his lip. _'She probably will someday, won't she? I don't know what we'll do then.'_

There was a moment of silence in his mind before Roxas said very quietly, sounding sad, _'No, I don't think she ever will. She'll probably be with you too forever. None of you can even conceive of leaving the other two anymore.'_

It should have made Sora happier. It didn't.

* * *

When they finally were on their way again, Sora had practiced Water and Earth until Aerith had told him he was in danger of magical exhaustion, practiced until his muscles screamed, and read up on plants with mystical and magical properties until his eyes watered. And he had pushed himself every single day. If his friends were going to train, he was going to make sure he was putting just as much effort in. He had barely seen his friends for the past two weeks. They looked exhausted.

"I have to ask," Kairi began, her lips twisted into mild amusement. "Do I looked as bad as you two?"

"Yes," Riku answered with a groan. "I've practiced with Cloud and Leon everyday – and I have no idea how they do it, practicing with both of us, Sora."

"Cloud only practiced with us sometimes, and only in the afternoon. Morning I practiced magic, when you were sparring." Sora stretched aching muscles and settled his packs in their room before going toward the cockpit. There were two other pairs of weary footsteps copying his movements and once the gummi ship was up and running, Kairi sighed loudly, getting Sora and Riku's attention.

"You know, I think we worked them as much as they worked us. I had Leon and Tifa in the evenings. I read in the morning and practiced with Aerith every other afternoon and Merlin on the other days." Kairi leaned back in her chair, staring at them and Sora turned his gaze on Riku.

"What? I sparred with Cloud in the morning. And Leon, sometimes – how the hell did he spar with all of us? Read in the afternoon. Practiced conjuring in the evening. So, was Sora with you in the evenings?" Riku looked toward Kairi and Sora smiled sheepishly at his friends.

"I was reading in the evening," he explained. Roxas added, _'And making sure the moogle spread on that they should start stocking hi-potions and x-potions everywhere. And buying every X-potion, Elixir, and Ether you thought could possibly fit, making a nice dent in our munny. Oh, and buying seeds.'_

_'Hey, do I report on your evening activities?'_ Sora shot back, trying to keep the pout off of his face.

Dryly, Roxas responded, '_Those were my evening activities too, since I was the one buying the seeds.'_

Sora chose to ignore that, feeling Roxas smiling smugly – now he knew that Roxas really was doing that, even if only in a projected beach in their mind. It was a great beach. _'It's our beach. How could it not be?'_

The arrogance there was too much and Sora snorted. When Riku and Kairi both glared at him, he flushed, smiling nervously. He had missed something. "Sorry. Talking to Roxas."

"I asked what you were reading about," Kairi explained, her eyes twinkling with an unreadable emotion.

Sora shrugged, feeling his flush deepen. He quickly pretended to be deeply engrossed in the control panels as he mumbled, "Gardening with plants that are... ya know, magical."

There was a pause, and a snort of laughter from Riku. "Is that all? At least we were reading something important."

"Hey," Kairi protested as Sora bristled mentally but hunkered down, still embarrassed. It was kind of useless.

"Well, what can you make from plants that I won't eventually be able to conjure up?" Riku asked, the amusement in his voice clear. Sora understood it. He thought Sora had just been reading because he had liked to garden, and even mystical plants were just plants.

That didn't stop Sora from snapping, "Elixirs, that's what."

In the following silence, Kairi was the first to speak. "Elixirs are made from plants?"

His head snapped up and he stared at Kairi. "Didn't Aerith explain?"

Kairi squirmed around in her seat and said slowly, "She explained about our bodies gaining immunities – but she didn't say what Elixirs, Potions, or Ethers are made from."

"They're all made from plants," Sora said, shrugging. He guessed Aerith hadn't felt it necessary to tell Kairi – or just hadn't gotten around to it. Seeing both of his friends looking at him strangely – and was that a flash of envy on Riku's face? – he offered, "I brought some books with me if you want to look at them."

"So... you can just grow anything from those plants. Endless supply of Hi-Potions and Ethers." There was something very flat about Riku's tone.

He grimaced, both at Riku's voice and the subject. "Not really. It's kinda... hard. It's more of something to do if I ever have a home. I can't really grow them on the ship. There's not enough sunlight or water. Or room."

"Oh," Riku said, sounding a little relieved – and then he sat up as if he had been stung. "Wait a second – Kairi, are your Light Flares actual light?"

Kairi shook her head. "It's not that kind of light. It's like the light inside of us – not sunlight."

"Oh," Riku repeated, this time sounding disappointed but now Sora's mind was working, trying to remember – then he shook his head. He couldn't remember. Maybe he would look in the elemental spells book later and see if it was something in there. He really needed to thank Riku again for that book.

Sinking back into his chair, they were in silence until Riku asked, "You're healthy now, right Sora?"

Sora blinked his eyes open, honestly surprised and almost laughing. "Oh, um. Yeah. I nearly forgot I was injured."

He didn't realize he had said something wrong until Riku had pinned him to his chair, glowering from above him. "Sora. Are you stupid? You almost died! How the fuck can you forget that?"

"Hey, there was a lot going – "

He didn't get a chance to finish as Kairi appeared over Riku's shoulder. "Died, Sora. We thought you were dead at one point! You – you can't just treat this like it was another injury!"

"But – it kinda was," he said meekly. "I recovered from it, I'm healthy, and I didn't lose a limb."

"No, just all your brain cells," Riku growled. "Damn it, Sora. Don't you even fell a little sorry about missing over a week of your life?"

Sora was about to point out he had lost a year of his life and taken it with no more than a few confused glances at the date and grumbling about people's memory loss, but Riku was already stalking off. Panicked, he glanced at Kairi, who smiled slightly. "Go after him. We can talk later. Just – don't take it so lightly anymore, okay? I don't think either of us can stand it."

Sora scrambled up from his seat and paused to kiss Kairi on the cheek in a quick show of gratitude before racing after his boyfriend. Except Riku definitely didn't want company, because the door was locked. Rolling his eyes, he took out Ultima. The first thing Leon had taught him was that he could open treasure boxes with it – door locks were no different, mechanical or not. He stomped in – and slammed right into a dark shield.

Dazedly, as he stared at it from the floor, he wondered how much of an energy drain that was to keep it sustained – or how much it wasn't. How good had Riku become with it?

He found out when he tried again and the shield was down. Riku was inside their room, trying desperately to beat up the wall. "You know, the wall's kinda defenseless."

"Any Nobodies or Heartless? No? Then the damn wall can take it." Riku slammed his fist into the wall. The metal dented slightly.

"I don't know about that – but if you're mad at _me_, hit _me_." It wasn't like they hadn't ever fought or wrestled before.

Riku shook his head, his wild mane of silver hair going everywhere. Sora shrugged, deciding he couldn't force his friend into a nice match – not when he was this angry. "When was the last time you brushed your hair?"

Riku's fist paused just before hitting the metal wall again and Sora patted himself on the back. Even if Riku was giving him a long considering look, like he was thinking his best friend was a little nuts. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"C'mere. I'll brush it out." Sora was already going through Riku's bags for a brush, ignoring the sounds of discontent from the older boy.

"I'm not a girl," Riku protested as Sora pushed him back to sit on a bed.

Sora raised an eyebrow and then leaned forward, putting his hands on either side of Riku's hips and when their lips nearly touched he whispered, "Really?"

Pressing his lips firmly against Riku's, he was aggressive in the kiss, his tongue pushing into Riku's mouth – and Riku gave as much as he got, trying to pull Sora forward and press their mouths more firmly together, tongues sliding against each other. Sora forgot about brushing Riku's hair, only pausing to pull back and whisper, "I couldn't tell."

The snarl from Riku's mouth made Sora swallow thickly. His boyfriend's angry sounds should not sound so good. But they did and Sora let Riku pull him down, and urged them both further back on the bed so they weren't half hanging off. He didn't even mind when Riku tore his shirt trying to get it over his head. He could fix it later. Fingers and a clever mouth danced across his chest. He really didn't mind the expression Riku made when he worked a hand into his boyfriend's pants.

And he forgot to mind anything at all when Riku slipped off his shorts and returned the favor with his mouth.

Forgot to mind everything including, unfortunately, the lock. He was reminded of this as he was sluggishly reaching for his clothes.

"Agh! Damn it, you two! Lock the door next time!" Kairi stomped her foot, blushing brightly – and took just a second too long to stare at them before suddenly squeaking and bolting out of the room.

Sora was trying to suffocate himself by way of pillow when Riku asked thoughtfully, "Did she just check us out?"

"No. She didn't check us out because that didn't happen because we remembered to lock the door," Sora said firmly.

_'No you didn't,'_ Roxas supplied helpfully just before Riku said, "No, it was definitely unlocked.

"I'm never going to be able to look at her again," Sora moaned. "At least you had pants on."

Sora took his head out from the pillow in time to see Riku look down at his undone pants and shrug. "Mostly."

Sitting upright, Sora tried to take it like a man. But his words were almost a whimper. "We should apologize."

His wrist was grabbed as he tried to get up and he scowled back at Riku. "What?"

"Showers first. And clothes, we should definitely be wearing clothes this time." Riku was grinning as he spoke and Sora flushed again. Part was embarrassment and part was exasperation because Riku's grin was anything but apologetic and could better be described as lusty. "Or, we could lock the door and – "

"Showers," Sora said firmly, and his lips twitched as Riku descended into a pout. "It's Kairi's room too."

"Yeah, I know. Just hoping we get some privacy soon. For her sake as well as ours." Riku was already swaggering toward the shower, evidently deciding he was getting it first.

"Me too," Sora agreed, thinking of Kairi's shocked face – and more guiltily of the lube in one of his bags. He was really hoping the next world was both peaceful and human.

They could all do with a rest. He just doubted they would get it.

* * *

End Chapter.

You know, this chapter? Totally wasn't supposed to be this long. And the content in it? Was supposed to take up only part of the chapter. A couple of things jumped me though. So hopefully it wasn't too bad considering the main plot didn't get moving much this chapter. Though, it all was kind of important and will come up later – if not in the story, in the side stories. I did enjoy finally fully explaining my take on potions though. Potions in game only give back a certain amount of HP so as you gain more HP, the potions do less. So I thought, how would this translate to a ore realistic approach? And that's what this was. I have the strange need to tie in the game mechanics realistically.


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

* * *

Chapter Twenty-One

Before returning to the path they had been on before Sora's near-death experience, they went back to the Land of Dragons. Sora had another dream, and Kairi, remembering his last dream, knew they wouldn't find anything good. They opened up into the area the world should have been – and were met with familiar empty space where Land of the Dragons had been months before. She glanced quickly to her left where Sora sat, to find his hands clenched around the arms of his chair, palms slowly turning white from the grip he had. She turned her face away, tilting her head until a curtain of red separated her from her boys.

She had bought the lucky chain there – the brother and sister who owned the shop had been nice enough. And Shang and Mulan, and the villagers – she swallowed thickly as she realized the ship wasn't moving. "Riku, take us out of here."

The next few weeks were spent visiting their friends on every planet Sora hadn't locked up and one of them locking the world. It wasn't a permanent solution, but it bought them more time so that the Heartless had more trouble getting in – they needed someone of the dark to call them there and then were only produced by the hearts of the people on the world when they killed them. It was better – and, to their relief, they found they could still visit them after they were locked up. It was just harder for anyone else to.

She hoped the rest of the journey didn't take too long. She wanted them home and peaceful for Riku's birthday. Between the journey, the training after Sora's brush with death and locking all the worlds they knew off, they had eaten up a lot of time, and were past the halfway point between her birthday and Riku's.

Her thoughts scattered as they came up on a new world. Instead of pushing on past Alice's world, they had taken the other path from Atlantica and had come upon another world. She saw Sora brighten visibly – and then sigh and lean back. "It looked like Deep Jungle for a second."

Nodding in understand, Kairi took a closer look. It did look like a jungle – but there were some parts that obviously had humans, though in smaller amounts. The animals seemed to have more sway on this world than the humans – so which would they be this time?

"There could be Nobodies down there. Stay alert," Riku snapped, and Kairi stiffened, but he wasn't talking to her and that made her angrier than ever. The boys had been going back and forth between snapping at each other to being too soft, as if they were struggling to be normal and also sensitive to the other's moods. But locking the worlds and seeing the devastation the Heartless were causing had unsettled them all.

Sora didn't even object to Riku snapping at him, and Kairi hesitated as she climbed to her feet, waiting. She realized Riku was waiting too, his hand posed on the transporter controls, not believing that he really wasn't getting Sora's strangely frightening glare at him or the cute scowl that looked more like a pout. Sora didn't do any of those – he just stood up and went to the transporter circle to wait.

She bit her lip, watching Riku stiffen from the corner of her eye, watching his hands clench into fists. Her eyes widened in realization. He had been deliberately baiting Sora. It seemed so clear now. Whenever they were fighting Heartless it just seemed like Sora was... going on automatic. Ever since they found Land of the Dragons. He wasn't depressed; either of them would have taken him in hand for that. He was just distant. He barely even used two Keyblades in a fight unless he had to.

"Right. Let's go then," Riku muttered, hands moving towards the controls. Kairi was surprised to see her own hand pulling him away.

"Wait," she said, and found that Riku looked _relieved_ at her interference. She turned toward Sora. "Come here."

He blinked, startled, and she smiled because he looked like his old self, more animated. But he came, and she pulled both boys close to her and each other. "What's wrong?"

If it had been Riku, a blunt statement wouldn't have worked. As it was Sora, he squirmed in place a moment, ducking his head before looking at her earnestly. "I just don't know if it's ever going to be over. And it's so stupid! We defeat Xehanort's Heartless, and then the Organization crops up. We defeat them and now this Lost Company is messing with everything. And – and every time I have a dream I can never do anything to change it. What if a new enemy pops up every time we defeat one? We'll never be able to relax!"

She was surprised – out of everything it could have been, he was worried if they would ever have time to relax. She had to smile a little - because it never occurred to him they could choose not to do it. She could see Riku with the same faint disbelieving smile. They would sometimes consider it – but Sora never saw any choice but to go forth at full throttle and save people.

It was Riku who finally answered him. "Then we won't be able to relax. We'll just keep fighting. It will be hard, and we might want to quit at times – those of us that have common sense anyway," he smirked pointedly at Sora, who bristled appropriately and scowled. "But we'll keep fighting, and it will be okay. You know it will as long as..."

She could actually see Riku swallowing his disgust at the cloying sugary sweet sentence that was coming out of his mouth. "...Because we have each other. All three of us will always be here."

But despite how much Riku looked like he wanted to gag, it did the trick with Sora, who brightened, his eyes soft. The small smile on his face, so unlike the grins and larger happy smiles, spoke of being content and _loving_ being there, loving them. Her cursed girlish heart skipped a beat and Sora pulled them both into a hug. "Thanks guys."

"Yeah, yeah," Riku muttered, scowling despite the fact he was holding them both as tightly as they were holding him.

Kairi giggled and decided to spare her friend any more embarrassment. "So let's go see this new world."

"Sure," Sora said cheerfully, his smile turning mischievous as Riku set the controls. "We all wouldn't want to turn into saps like Riku."

Her resigned sigh was the last thing uttered on the gummi ship as Riku snarled and pounced on his boyfriend – and came down on the world trying to strangle a cat. Not a small cat either, a big cat though smaller than a lion and it took a moment to separate which species, having to remember that leopards had smaller spots than the jaguars. Jaguars more had patches than spots – rosettes. Sora was a jaguar. An oddly colored one, slightly darker than normal. And he was missing his spiky hair. She found this unfair.

While Riku and Sora stared at each other in puzzlement, she took stock of herself, surprised at what she found. She was a wolf. A very reddish wolf, but a wolf none the less. And Riku was still human. Cue confusion on her parts, annoyance and anger on Riku's, and enthusiasm on Sora's.

_'He takes to being a cat very well,'_ Naminé offered, and Kairi stopped contemplating the puzzling differences to watch Sora dart around, his cat body swift and able to leap from branch to branch easily and without a care. She looked up at him enviously.

"I bet we can shoot him down," Riku muttered, too low for her usually to hear. But by the sly, sideways glance he knew she could hear him. She grinned and focused, not knowing how the magic would find its escape in this form. And the Light Flares formed at the tip of her muzzle. She risked a glance at Riku to see Dark Auras in his two hands. He grinned and she bared her teeth in the equivalent. Then the dark and light streaked for the brown jaguar – and he disappeared.

She yelped as something landed on her back, the weight pushing her down, and there was a soft laughing growl in her ear. "Nice try, you two. But all I had to do was fall off the branch and then jump for you."

"Your body has better reactions than ours," she accused, but he just laughed and she felt her muzzle open into something akin to a grin. Hearing him laugh was always good and there had been little of it in the past few weeks. The last time he had really laughed with his eyes that bright – it had been on Wonderland, when she had been trying to enjoy being with them, while trying not to show the guilt she felt.

_'It's better this way. They don't need to know Kamxis is alive. He left and he won't come back. I think that was obvious by the fact Alcexan attacked alone. Kamxis might as well be dead.'_ Naminé's quite voice had been a constant reminder that she shouldn't feel guilty – but sometimes she still was.

Sora bounding off into the trees again broke her out of her reverie. "Come on, let's see where we are!"

"Sora!" She called at the same time as Riku called, "Wait!"

"He's going to get himself killed one of these days," Riku grumbled, and she echoed the very real concern beneath the gruff tone of his voice. The memories of Alcexan's claws in Sora and the blood and the potions doing _nothing_ were too fresh. She had nightmares about it sometimes. She bet she always would.

The area was a jungle – which was nice in it's own way. It felt a little like home. Not quite the same, there was no beach for one, but some of the plants had the same feel. She wondered if Sora's body would somehow manage to have two Keyblades if he called two at the same time, and how that would work.

She wasn't even sure why she was a wolf this time – and why Riku was normal. Sora's clothes automatically changed him sometimes, or so he said. She would suspect it was the world itself and its natural magic changing them, and out of the three of them, she was the best to guess at what the world wanted. But it was either all three of them were animals, or all three were humans. And usually they had been the same animals. This wasn't making sense to her. Donald and Goofy had been different than Sora on Atlantica and when he became a lion, they were different then. So maybe being different animals wasn't important – but Riku still being a human was just... strange.

Her thoughts were lost as Sora bounced back to them, jumping down quietly from among the trees. "Come on you two, you're so slow!"

As Riku launched himself at the jaguar-boy, in an attempt to show him who was slow, and Kairi laughed before jumping into the fray. She could figure it out later.

* * *

Two days later, the novelty of her new body and the strange situation had worn off. For her at least. She loved the stamina this body had, but she would have rather been human. Sora thought the same – but he wasn't going to admit that to Riku yet. She had to admit she was almost glad Sora wasn't human, since she had walked in on her boys too many times and as _nice_ as it was to see them like that, it was also embarrassing and with only the three of them, she doubted they would contain themselves for long. They were boys, after all. In particular, they were her boys, and neither was known for self-restraint.

She watched them, having woken up first for once, and smiled. Riku, like usual, slept in between them, and even with Sora's new body the older boy had curled into the soft furry body, while she stretched out beside him. She wondered if they had slept like that the night before – Riku curled up inside the curve of Sora's long body, and Sora naturally curling around him, tail lying against the boy's legs, head on his paws and nearly nuzzling the other boy's hair. It was adorable, and she hated to wake them, but something was moving, and it wasn't Heartless. Those had attacked them plenty in the last few days, and she knew the different.

"Sora," She called, her voice pitched low. Normally, he wouldn't have heard her – but his new body was equipped with higher senses, and blue eyes jerked open, the sleep fading from his eyes quickly, his muscles tensed and ready to leap up. She was sure the only reason he didn't was because he didn't want to wake Riku for a false alarm.

She waited, and saw him nod, hearing the distant noise as well. She carefully stood and cocked her head, trying to indicate she would check it out. He looked confused – and then shook his head, seeming to be almost angry. Then he woke Riku with a small nudge to a silver head and she sighed, waiting.

"What's going on? I don't hear anything," Riku muttered as he got up and they began to move, Sora disappearing into the trees. She stayed by Riku's side to explain.

"Our hearing is better than yours. We don't know what, exactly, is going on. Just that it's noisy." Just as she stopped speaking there was a yowl and then some snarling from two voices, one of which she recognized as Sora. As a roar of another animal sounded, they looked at each other in resignation.

She leapt forward ahead of Riku, grinning briefly as her friend cursed her. But then her focus was on running toward the noise, the ground under her feet soft from the morning rain, but warm, giving easily to her paws as she jumped over longs and under fallen trees. She caught a flash of brown and in mid pace switched direction, haunches skidding in one direction as her front legs shoved her toward Sora.

There was hissing and growling, but she didn't see a glimpse of a Keyblade, so she guessed there hadn't been fighting yet. She leapt through bushes, landing neatly next to Sora with a deep, threatening growl.

It took her a moment to understand what was going on. There was a bear, gray and larger than any bear she had seen, and a panther. Apparently, they were working together. She didn't think that was normal – but she saw a boy behind them, probably not even a teenager yet. She would guess he was between ten and twelve years of age – and he was holding a stick, as if he was going to help defend his friends.

She almost laughed at the absurdity of it all, but instead shook herself and straightened from her threatening crouch. "Sora, stop that. Are you two planning to attack us?"

"Hey, we should be asking you that. He's the one who dropped in on us," The bear said with an accusing claw pointed toward her friend. She looked at Sora, who had a familiar embarrassed expression on her face.

"I didn't think about it," Sora confessed. "I saw the the kid over there and I was curious so I..."

"Leapt in without a thought of the consequences. _That_ never happens," Riku said with a snort as he ambled in past the bushes and trees. She wondered just who he thought he was fooling – she could see the evidence of his own dead run to them, a few scratches where plants had nicked him, and his breathing just the slightest bit faster than usual. Then again, she wondered if anyone else could even tell other than her and Sora. The strangers didn't know him like they did.

"You're a Man!" There was both a hint of fear and awe in all three voices and Kairi tilted her head, curiously eyeing the boy who seemed just as surprised as the bear and the panther.

"Well, yeah. What else would he be?" Sora scoffed and Kairi nearly giggled. She actually did when Riku glared at his boyfriend and smacked his head.

Ignoring the surprised looks the other three were giving her she quickly made up an explanation. "We're from far away. Is there no, um, man place around here?"

"There is a man-village. We're trying to take Mowgli there," the panther explained, and she noticed the boy's angry look.

"I'm not going to any man-village," Mowgli declared, and eyed all of them but especially Riku suspiciously. Riku sneered in return, obviously about to say something that would probably have all on each other's throats again. She moved to do something about it, but Sora was there already, the boy in a jaguar's body casually stretching and managing to land a back paw on their friend's foot. She met his eyes and she could see an echo of her own amusement at Riku's bitten off yelp.

"Why not?" she questioned. The information would be useful – and she was curious to find out why a young boy wasn't with his own kind. Mowgli only seemed to grow angrier, swiping at the bushes with the stick he had picked up with an extraordinary lack of grace. Absently she noted he would probably be Sora's type of fighter if he ever took up a sword.

She was surprised at the details she notice – not just the scents and sounds her new temporary body gave her, but the things she was picking up more now that she hadn't before. The last few months had been hard on them all – but they came with good results. Her eyes swung to her boys as Mowgli continued to swipe at the bushes, not saying a thing until he finally got her attention again by muttering, "I'm not telling you. I don't trust you."

"That's fine with us," Riku said, obviously ready to move on, bored with the angry preteen. She wondered, slightly amused, if he didn't see the similarities, a bit of himself in the boy. He probably didn't, but she could easily see a younger Riku stubbornly attacking bushes in a fit of pique and keeping information just for the sake of annoying the rest of them. This often happened when Sora wasn't there to spar with or she wasn't there to judge their competitions when they were younger. And now – here was another trio. But she had to admit, while she would see Riku in Mowgli, the other two were more like guardians.

It was why when Riku turned to stalk off, she was reluctant to leave. The kid was all alone in his own way – he had no one even near his age. Her eyes caught Sora's as she turned to follow Riku and he winked slowly. His cheery voice rang through the air as he said, "Yeah, that's fine with us. We wouldn't want to be bored to death after all. Just a kid's whining because he doesn't get what he wants."

She was surprised at the comment. Riku had always been the harsh one – but he did it because he could, to push buttons and get a fight going. She could see in Sora's lazy body language, in the way he looked behind him as he turned, that it was a challenge – but not for a fight. She nearly licked him for the joy of it. Sora could be clever when he wanted to.

"Whining? I'm not whining! I want to stay here, in the jungle. This is where I live, where all of my friends are – like Baloo and Bagheera! Father and Mother and all of my friends are here!" He didn't sound like he was whining – Kairi had to admit it was a good complaint. No one wanted to be away from the few friends they had ever known. Even Riku, when he had wanted to leave the island, had wanted them along.

"It's not safe for him here," the panther, apparently known as Bagheera explained. "The tiger Shere Khan is after him. You must have heard of him."

She knew her face had gone blank with incomprehension, and she could see Sora shrug his shoulders out of the corner of her eye. It looked odd on a jaguar. Riku was the one who answered, "Never heard of him."

"Huh. Wish I came from as far away as you. Where'd you come from anyway?" Baloo asked. She lowered her head, feeling a pang of regret for not thinking of her home in so long. But she did so miss Destiny Islands.

Sora shifted closer, his shoulder bumping hers, and Riku was the one who quietly explained, "Our home is gone. Destroyed completely. As far as we know, we're the only ones left."

Now they had their attention. Attention they hadn't really needed. Kairi almost wished they had left – but something was telling her this was important. It was like the tingle of energy she now had when she called Radiant Spirit. There was just something that told her not to leave them. She wasn't surprised to hear the boy ask, both curious and grudgingly sympathetic, "How'd it happen?"

"Heartless and Nobodies. Black shadows and these gray creatures. You seen any of them?" Sora's question was met with three gaping mouths and then there was suspicion again. Surprised, she exchanged quick glances with her friends as the other three slipped into more defensive positions.

It was Bagheera who finally answered. "We've seen them. They attacked us only a short while ago."

"Yeah, right before we ran into you three. You bringing trouble to our home?" The bear was glaring at her and she found herself sizing him up and knew she could take him. She barely had to think about it. It almost scared her, how far above a normal level she was now.

"We're following them. We're not allied with them," Sora stated, and she could see the guilt in his frame, and hear it a bit in his voice. She didn't blame them for continuing to look at them suspiciously – and she dropped her head again to hide her own guilt. They were following them – but their three hearts together called the Heartless like a Siren called ships. The tastiest treat they could find, that's all they were to the Heartless.

Mowgli was eyeing them with bright-eyed curiosity now and she wondered if every boy in all the worlds had the same brand of reckless curiosity in exchange for common sense. Not that Sora and Riku didn't have common sense... There just wasn't a lot of it. And most of it had been beaten into their heads from Heartless and Nobodies attacking. Naminé giggled in her mind. _'And jumping into a portal is common sense? You had no idea where it went.'_

_'Between a strange creepy man who had surrounded me with monsters and a friendly dog having me follow him, I'll pick the dog. Besides... the whistle sounded familiar,'_ Kairi defended herself with an air of hurt. She wouldn't say she was the most careful of girls, but she wouldn't compare herself to her boys' brand of recklessness. Naminé didn't voice her disagreement, but Kairi could feel it, along with the accompanying amusement.

"What will you do when you find them?" Mowgli asked, his eager expression a sure sign of what he thought they would do.

Riku didn't disappoint. "We'll destroy as many as we can. They destroyed our home."

"And we'll make sure it doesn't happen to anyone else," Sora added fiercely, his blue eyes bright with rage that she hoped only she and Riku could see. As much as he had hated to see Destiny Islands destroyed, it was almost as if losing the worlds of his friends was even more difficult. It had been easier to take when they were targets. When it was everyone... She knew she at least felt a little helpless. They couldn't protect everyone all the time. It just wasn't possible.

Despite the fire in his eyes, it was Sora's statement more than Riku's or anything she had said that relaxed the bear and the boy. The panther still looked suspicious – but she would be too if she had a boy under her care who needed protection.

Trying to turn the conversation away from thoughts of her home, she asked with forced cheer, "Mowgli, why don't you try the village out? Surely no one would be able to keep you there if you decided you wanted to return."

"When he goes to the village, he must stay there," Bagheera proclaimed. She smiled, as best as a smile would form with her muzzle, and shook her head.

"Telling a stubborn boy what he must do is the best way I know to make sure it doesn't ever happen. But this isn't any of our business. Come on you two. Let's leave them to their arguing." She stood now, and turned, much the same way Riku had earlier. But this time when she exchanged sly grins with Sora, it was Riku who looked disgruntled.

They had taken no more than a few steps away when Mowgli cried, "Wait up!"

* * *

Days after they had landed found them with a lazy bear, a suspicious panther, and a troublesome boy. Mowgli wasn't troublesome on purpose – he just had the long upstanding tradition of any child to get into as much trouble as possible before he grew up. Most of it was accidents, but Kairi knew it didn't matter. Mowgli would continue to get into more scrapes – the jungle was a dangerous place. Bagheera was right – but saying it to Mowgli would only make trouble. Riku had found that out, and she glanced over at her scowling friend, who was unusually quiet, possibly from losing an argument with the boy.

The Heartless had been around, as had the Nobodies, but it was nothing important, mostly small groups, easily taken care of, as they had been for a while. Kairi was oddly disappointed – she wanted to show off her new techniques, and wanted to se more of what the boys had learned. She had a feeling there was a bigger battle to come – there was darkness lurking, and she could feel it in her soul. Since Radiant Spirit had become truly hers and hers alone, she could feel the planet's heart – and darkness was warping this one's. They were getting closer to the main source.

She mentioned this in a quiet whisper to Riku while they walked, and then to Sora. Riku had nodded shortly, but stayed calm. Sora had bristled and made as if to go off and find it – but a quick bite to his ear kept him in line.

"Something's coming," Riku said, and she listened hard – but not with her heart. It was easier for her to feel Nobodies by their lack of heart – the Heartless were harder, and she knew it had to be Heartless since she couldn't get a grasp on the numbers.

"What's coming?" Mowgli asked eagerly, no fear shining in his eyes. She wished there wasn't a reason for him to be, but there was, and she positioned herself on his front while Baloo took his back and Riku stepped closer to them. Sora and Bagheera were both spreading out, circling around them widely, listening for the first physical sign of a threat.

Bagheera wasn't used to Heartless – she knew because he wasn't looking into the ground, and caught a claw on his shoulder when a Neoshadow erupted from the ground. Kairi was closest and left her position by Mowgli to leap to the panther's aid. Radiant Spirit came to existence in her muzzle and she leapt, swinging it with swift, strong slashes and whirling to the next one when all it left behind were a few munny and an almost useless Potion.

It was the larger attack they had been expecting. It wasn't the main source, but there were enough Heartless suddenly around them that for a moment she forgot it was late afternoon and wondered if it had turned to night.

"There's too many!" Bagheera cried from somewhere behind and to her left. She was whirling amidst deadly darkness, unable to even see her boys or the other three for a time. But she could hear them, Riku's breaths, as he killed, almost silently except for grunts of pain or exertion. Sora was louder, more animalistic than either of them when he was fighting with his new body. Snarls and growls came from all around, and when Mowgli cried out, Sora's cry of rage was a yowl and an explosion of action. She knew because there was a sudden decrease of Heartless behind her and flashes of lightning spread around them – and then water came an instant later.

She knew then that Sora had been practicing. What had once been a small wave when he first used the spell now curled around the Heartless and send them crashing stunned into trees and the ground. She leapt upon the closest ones, Light Flares and Radiant Spirit killing them as quickly and efficiently as possible. She called a few Light Circles, and considered using a newer spell – but she reconsidered it and decided to save her energy when another Thundaga tore through the area.

In moments, all of them were panting to some degree, and Sora was trying to pick a Potion bottle up from the ground with his teeth. When Riku picked it up for him, she followed Sora's gaze and Riku's steps to where Mowgli lay against a tree, groaning. There was blood all down one leg and she trotted closer to stare at the gash in one leg. "It's longer than it is deep. I think it looks worse than it is."

"It feels horrible," Mowgli said, and she looked up, surprised that he wasn't crying. Much to her chagrin, he caught her look and added, "I've been injured before. I live in the jungle."

"Of course," She said softly, her eyes dimmed with pity. He was so young – and so very alone. He didn't even understand how alone he was. The animals were his friends, but he didn't have their advantages. He had his own, but he hadn't been taught how to use them. Without the panther looking out for him, he would have been dead long ago – she was surprised an infection hadn't killed him by now.

She had to wonder if his parents were still alive, and why he wasn't with them, or at the village in the first place. But her attempts to be subtle and Sora's blunt questions provided no answers – Bagheera didn't know. Baloo didn't know and didn't want to talk of Mowgli going back to the man village.

"I'm going to look ahead to find a place to rest," She announced suddenly. In reality, she was a little hungry, and this would kill two birds with one stone. When both Sora and Riku jerked their heads up, Sora's ears flattening to his head, she added, "I'll howl if I see even a hint of Nobodies or Heartless."

She leapt away, out of sight within moments thanks to the thick foliage of the jungle. She settled into a ground-eating lope, her nose flaring as every scent of the jungle was sorted and catalogued. Her sense of smell was the best now, really. She still tended to depend on her eyes too much, but the smells were nearly overpowering. It made her that much happier that Alcexan was gone and wouldn't be altering any scents anymore.

Her stomach growled, and she altered course slightly. Her nose said "_Rodent_" and she followed it, dropping off into a slow crawl as it became overpowering. She was salivating just at the smell, imagining the raw meat on her tongue, blood in her mouth, the quick, short snap that would kill it. Everything that usually would have managed to make her shudder as a human almost excited her as a wolf. They were meant to hunt as packs... But she kept to hunting small things instead. She didn't want Sora and Riku to see how she let the instincts take over. She knew that Sora did the same thing, but knowing he did, and having him see her do it were so far about they might as well have been in a different language. Of course, languages held no barriers to them with the Keyblades, but the concept was similar.

Her eyes caught the small movement, her ears hearing paws scratch against soft earth, digging up food. It was all she needed to see. Without making a sound she leapt. It tried to run but she was too close, and it didn't manage more than a few paces before she had snapped it's neck and sat down to enjoy her meal. Her boys wouldn't get too worried – and Bagheera and Baloo would be focused on Mowgli. She had some time.

Despite the way she tried to soothe her mind, she still gobbled down the rodent, the brown fur disappearing quickly along with all of its inside. She wanted to feel guilty about enjoying it, but she just couldn't. Naminé murmured softly, _'Why should you? In this form, it is natural. It is what you have to do to survive. There is no reason to be ashamed.'_

_'You are much wiser than I,'_ Kairi returned ruefully. She was surprised at the laughter that Naminé responded with.

_'I know both of us very well – and of us, you have the wisdom. You just don't see it the same way I do._' Naminé's words echoed in her mind as the Nobody faded into the background, as she was likely to do when saying such remarks, and Kairi thought about her words as she trotted off, keeping an eye on her surroundings so she would know where she had been and could go back to the others once she found a spot to sleep in. She had spotted the perfect place – but there was an odd looking creature there that formed into a strangely colored snake.

With black scales that faded into dark brown and gray eyes, she was almost sure it wasn't normal. Feeling the lack of hearts cinched it. She crouched and growled in a low warning tone as it began to uncoil, the tongue flicking into the air. Those eyes looked at her, partly amused, and the snake fell from the fallen tree trunk it had been sunning itself on and began to slither around her.

"Who are you?" She growled, and the Nobody paused a moment, tilting its head before flicking it's tail and continuing the large circle.

"It doesn't matter, really. I won't fight with you. It is pointless, lacking in tact and strategy. I simply wanted to observe you three, who had killed so many. I certainly didn't expect to be caught napping. I'm so... careless." The way he said it, his voice too light and the word emphasized, she had to think he wasn't careless at all.

"Come on now, Princess. Don't glare at me so. It's not becoming of your rank." He was circling closer and she snapped as the head came too close. He backed off, gray eyes unblinking but wholly amused. "But, you don't even remember it all, do you? Pretty little Princess, playing in the castle."

Anger and confusion warred and he laughed. "I wasn't there. But I've met others who were, who came to your world as adventurous teenagers and found a tiny little princess, with only her family to play with."

She wasn't going to let him say more. She didn't need to know. It simply wasn't her place anymore. She lunged for him – and faster than she had expected his lunged right back, coiling around her tight and squeezing until she could barely breath, her struggles faint with lack of air. And he was laughing, still laughing as if it was so amusing that he could kill her in a second. "I should just keep squeezing and eat you right up. Your friends would never even realize what happened – and you aren't necessary. You're a curiosity, but in the end, superfluous. Only Sora is necessary. Riku wouldn't do it. You haven't got the strength to make the choice. No, only him – but it would be too easy to kill you, and I like to see my games play out. Even if this game is controlled by another."

She gasped in air, kicking at him weakly, trying to get enough pressure behind her back legs to push him off. His head slithered around until his eyes were looking into hers. "What would your old family think now? What would your good old Uncle think? Well, nothing now. He died trying to harness hearts into data, now didn't he?"

She couldn't comprehend what he was saying, not with the air being pressed from her lungs and she could feel her ribs cracking one by one. As soon as black spots took over her vision, she felt the coils release and the Nobody slithered away. She saw nothing, but could hear him laughing from far away – and it chilled her that despite how far away he was, there was a brush of fingers through her fur, ruffling it in mock affection. His voice still came from far away as he said, "Goodbye, Princess!"

Then it all disappeared and she lay there, feeling ashamed at her lack of ability. Why hadn't she used magic on him? There wasn't an answer, not even from Naminé, and she cast Cure quickly. Once she was up, she cast a glance around, seeing nothing to even prove he was there. Despite that, she knew the first thing she would do once she could get her boys alone was tell them what had happened – even the part she was sure had to be a lie.

* * *

End Chapter.

Sorry about the long wait - and I do have a beta now, but wasn't able to get a hold of them to look over this yet. We haven't seemed to be on AIM at the same time the past few days, but hopefully soon. Also, if anyone has insanejournal, I'm over there now after the recent Livejournal mess. I'm under the name natala on insanejournal. I once in awhile post things about Vagabonds there outside of the chapters, and post about other stories I might someday do. In other new, fall semester starts in a couple of weeks, and I'm trying to get better grades so expect that updates might start taking awhile, sorry.


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

Author's Note: A big thanks to chiiaroscuro for being my beta. You can all thank her for this being easier to read.

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Two

Despite the fact that being human was perfectly fine for him (considering how badly he usually did in animal bodies at first) Riku was envying the fact his friends had fur. For one thing, the mosquitoes had an easier time getting at his skin than theirs. They were faster than him like this, and did more damage than he. But when he woke up only a day away from the man village they had been slowly been heading to, he found a good reason to be human while his friends were animals.

He could go into a river for a morning swim, having taken off his clothes and soak there. In the humid heat of the jungle's misty morning, he sat beneath the waterfall, shadowed by two trees, their oval leaves rustling together in a small breeze that died almost instantly. He was cool, almost cold in the shadows. The only hair he had to worry about could be tied back. And in this weather, for once Riku did, lazily swimming back to shore, and shuffling through pockets for that one tie he carried around. He ignored Sora's amusement, a smug smile lifting his lips.

"It's so nice to be able to wash up in the morning," he exclaimed, grinning as Kairi and Sora both glanced sharply at him. "And so easy to dry off."

Their looks descended into glares. They had found out just the day before that as easy as Bagheera and Baloo made it look, even shaking did not get rid of all the water, and it would stick under the fur, melting into an itch and didn't cool them down for long as they tried to shake all of it off. Apparently they didn't have the hang of it. Sora especially didn't like the water, and Riku had to wonder how much of that was instinct. Sora usually loved the water.

Kairi's ears twitched and she turned her head away from him. He waited, his own eyes scanning the trees around them as he dressed. Then Kairi glanced back at him. "Mowgli is coming."

"Which means the other two aren't far behind either," Riku commented, tugging his hair into a loose ponytail at the nape of his neck with the elastic tie. Maybe he did need to cut it, for the sake of when he fought if for no other reason.

"He does need watching," Sora pointed out, flopping down on the riverbank. "Seriously, the only person I've seen get into more trouble..."

"Would be us. People, not person – you've definitely been in just as many accidents as me. And we did fine by ourselves, didn't we?" He realized his tone was a little gruff, but continued on. "And damnit, we learned from our mistakes and at least the trouble we got into was creative! He just gets into the same trouble, getting nearly kidnapped by some creature or another, or just being plain stupid! At least we had some survival instincts!"

There was a soft growl from behind them, and the clatter of familiar small feet, running away. Riku turned, suddenly regretting how loud he had been – though he didn't regret the words; they were true. Bagheera snarled at him once more before following Baloo who was shouting, "Mowgli! Come back! You'll get eaten!"

"We should probably go look for him," Sora suggested, already standing again. Kairi followed suit but Riku stood stiff-legged and stubborn.

"Why? Look, I'm sorry the kid ran off, but he's not our business. We're running out of time. The more time we waste, the more ground the Lost Company gains. Baloo and Bagheera can take care of Mowgli – they can face Heartless, what's one lousy tiger?" Without waiting for an answer, Riku stomped off in the opposite direction, unsure if he was angrier with Mowgli, his friends... or most likely, himself.

* * *

He knew Kairi was at least disappointed with him and Sora was understanding – but still wishing they had helped Mowgli more. It was nearing nightfall when they finally spoke again, and surprisingly Sora didn't bring up anything about Mowgli. "Hey Kairi, do you think that Nobody was telling the truth?"

Riku glanced sidelong at the red wolf as they walked through the underbrush. She had stumbled at the question and was studying the trees a moment before finally meeting their eyes. "I don't know."

"What do you feel?" Riku asked softly. In these cases their instincts were all they had to go on. And Kairi's instincts were better than most anyone's.

"It makes sense. I mean, every one of the Princesses of Heart either was or would become a Princess. Makes sense I would have been born into a similar position, if not quite the same," Kairi answered softly.

Riku exchanged a grim glance with Sora before repeating, "What do you _feel_?"

Kairi stopped, and so did they. He looked at her, cocking his head and being understanding. As understanding as he could be when he didn't get told he had unexpected family members. Then again, he knew all of his family members. So maybe he and Sora couldn't understand – but they could and would be there to hear her out.

She sighed, shaking her head, ears pinned back. "I feel... I feel like it should be a lie because... wouldn't he have recognized me? But I don't really think it is anymore. The more I think about it, the more a part of me just knows it's true."

"Ten years by the time he saw you... No one looks the same as they were as a child," Sora said sympathetically.

Riku, who had spent more time with DiZ, snorted and said not unkindly, "He was obsessed. Even if he recognized you it would have meant nothing to him."

He saw the ears flatten and Sora's reproachful look. His glance shifted away and he quickly amended, "Maybe at the end – he was better then. But it was a bit late for apologies then."

"Right," Kairi said, her smile shaky and uncertain. He hated that his words had done that and felt a bit lost, looking toward Sora who bumped his hand with his head before moving over to Kairi.

The boy in a feline's body prowled around Kairi, nudging the smaller animal. "Hey. Magic practice?"

And like that, there was a flicker of light back in Kairi's eyes, glowing brightly. "Sure. I've been thinking about trying out the other restoration type spells – Esuna was a big one. None of us get poisoned often, but we never know what we'll run in to. And I'm trying to figure out a way to make offensive barriers – a wall or a dome that spreads over people and sends out energy. I don't think it could be held long without a source... But I was kind of looking into that as well. Gems that can hold magic. If our clothes can carry enchantments, then things can hold spells – especially the stones that already have affinities for them."

Riku blinked, staring a bit, but wasn't surprised, not really. They had all done a lot of thinking last time in Radiant Garden, found new things to do. That, the enchantments, was a bit like her idea – but hers seemed quicker. And... Possibly highly fruitful, in more ways than one. He tucked the idea in the back of his mind, the part of his mind that had driven him to researching enchantments. Potions and Elixirs were well and good but not everyone could use magic. It would be a wonderful resource if they could sell gems or stones or anything that had spells in them, just one or two of each kind... They would have enough munny to be self-sufficient forever. They could take care of each other and the rest of the universe could leave them well enough alone.

Though, he hadn't really minded the attention. He had been getting close to Cloud, enjoying the man's quiet understanding sometimes, but with that same almost nervous tension underneath that Riku sometimes felt, like there was always something more he should or could be doing for his friends. Leon didn't have it, not in the same way – maybe he once had, but there was a confidence to Leon's graceful stride and a calm command in his eyes that Cloud didn't quite have – and Riku surely didn't. Sora was closer to that than he was. Except Sora would never think of commanding, ever.

He leaned against a tree as they came into a clearing, willing to let the other two spar for now. His spells were more limited, though he was surely working on that. It was funny – Sora was their powerhouse, Kairi their offensive healer, and he pure muscle with just a bit of emergency healing to back him up. Potions and Hi-Potions – which he was sure he could do now, though it was slow going still – and someday maybe Mega-Potions and X-Potions. X-Potions... Sora had some. He had nearly kissed his boyfriend breathless when he had pulled one out before getting to this jungle world. It was easier to conjure after he had already felt it, had it tingle into his blood, calming his veins and stitching him together. He wouldn't be able to conjure it yet, but it was a dream that didn't seem so impossible now.

Plus the stock of X-Potions would be useful. Even if the costs had nearly made him choke, and he had choked more when he realized Sora had never really counted his munny... and when he did pull it out, it was a lot more than Riku had thought. He had known Sora had a lot of munny... but he hadn't known it was that much. And he had called what he spent on the X-Potions a large portion – so how much had he had before?

He tuned in to hear Kairi chatting as she sent spinning globes of light at an astonishingly agile Sora who retaliated with waves of ice cold water – literally, he was mixing Blizzaga with... it had to be at least Watera now, Riku was startled to realize.

"The theory with synthesizing items isn't really that different than imbuing magic into something. I bet eventually I can combine the two – synthesize something and give it different properties than it would normal have. I mean, we have Fira Bangles – but what if we could make Acrisius but also imbue it with magic – or have some spells that could be set to go off if we were in bad shape or there were too many enemies." She was nearly babbling her excitement and it made Riku almost dizzy to think of how someone could accomplish that – to put those kind of things together, with those limitations and setting them off... it would take a special kind of armor and accessories that they didn't yet have... but maybe they could learn to make it.

He wanted that future. Wanted it more than he could ever tell them. He loved their adventure now – but because he was with them. He would gladly settle down - as much as he thought any of them could really settle down now with their instincts screaming at them to fight – as long as they were there with him. A nice house for the three of them – or four, leave room for another because he was practical enough to realize Kairi might eventually want to find someone. But he was possessive enough of them both to want them all under the same roof within easy reach.

"Kairi... I don't understand half of the things you'd need to do for that, but I'll try and help," Sora said earnestly, but there was a sly grin on his face. "First though – you should learn some basic magic defense."

And it was with those words that Sora switched and simultaneously – which was likely extremely dangerous, at least with Water and Blizzard he had done them one after another – called Thunder from above and Earth from below, trapping Kairi between them – she chose to jump away from the shaking, quaking ground, and was caught by the lightning bolts above. She yelped – but Riku knew she would survive and was paying more careful attention to Sora, who had shuddered a moment, then swayed before steadying, all before Kairi had even hit the ground again. There was a triumphant gleam there, and Riku realized all over again Sora hadn't been just healing while they were in Radiant Garden.

Two Keyblades, two spells – related, maybe, except Sora didn't have two Keyblades in this form and the spells drained power while the Keyblades, though depending on a certain kind of power being there, never drained them a bit. His friends were growing more powerful – but it was okay. He was growing too, and in his research for enchantments he had found other spells he hoped to try out – maybe even now. "So, can anyone join or is this just a party for animals?"

"I'm sure we can make an exception this once," Sora said, eyes dancing with laughter. Riku stepped forward – and bounded to one side at the Light Circle that appeared beneath him, ducking beneath the circle of fire aimed his way. He had to be quick with the spell. He knew Sora had once had something similar, but he couldn't grasp that yet, frustrated at how Sora could so automatically do it, but then, he had never done this.

"Slow!" He snapped sharply, Slender Thorn aiming the spell at the two of them. Sora and Kairi scattered, but not fast enough, their limbs suddenly slower and Riku grinned. "I win."

It was true – in a real battle, the spell would have been enough to destroy any enemy – they would be too slowed down to block, to defend. But he waited, Slender Thorn disappearing and arms crossed over his broad chest as the spell wore off.

He shouldn't have been surprised when Sora immediately pounced – but the purr was unexpected and the grin on his face and in his eyes made Riku desperately wish for them to be human. "That was amazing, Riku! Why haven't you used that before?"

Kairi's gentle laughter drifted closer until she was nudging Sora's heavy feline body off of him. The boy in a jaguar's body lazily leapt into the tree above, the energy that was always vibrating through his friend having new ways to get out now. He slowly rose to his feet, grinning smugly. "I was waiting for the opportune moment."

Which actually meant he hadn't known if it would work yet and Kairi's sidelong glance said she thought the same – but Sora just laughed and leapt away. "Let's move on, and we can see if it works as well on Heartless!"

* * *

Actually, it was Nobodies they met next; some as sinewy as the snake Kairi had run into, though with little feelers creeping up from under the scales. Sora called them Bugs. Kairi called them creepy, and he called them dead because Slow did work on them – though it drained more of his magic than he had thought and he tucked the spell away. He could cast it, but it was draining on more than a couple of enemies – it hadn't been that draining on Sora and Kairi, but he half suspected that was because they hadn't fought it as much, stunned and awed and willing to test it out with the curiosity that he always worried would someday swallow them up into something they couldn't handle.

Then there was Shere Khan. It was unexpected, and sudden, when Sora stopped dead, Kairi's hackles raised and he stopped at those signals to see a tiger lunging for Mowgli.

The spell was out of his hand before he knew it. Mid-leap, Shere Khan slowed – but Mowgli was still frozen, and the spell was useless if the boy didn't move. He had forgotten the Slow spell wasn't just of advantage to him, but to his allies, and Sora was moving only moments after the spell left his hand, following it, lunging – not at the slowed tiger, but at Mowgli beneath his claws. In near panic, Riku tried to strengthen the spell, not wanting it to break just as Sora somehow managed to spin the boy up, with teeth that were gentle, but still too sharp, leaving marks in the boys arm.

But Mowgli still had presence of mind to grab on as Sora barely slowed. Shere Khan's paws slowly hit the dirt as Kairi lunged forward and Riku felt the spell break under the struggling power of Shere Khan. As the tiger was released from the spell he jerked his head up to glare with yellow eyes. Riku gritted his teeth as Heartless suddenly began to appear. There was always someone who thought they could call the Heartless without being eaten by them. He should know. He had been one of them.

Shere Khan had no time to focus on Riku as the one who had hit him with the spell – Kairi had just hit him, her small wolf body bowling them both over, Keyblade in her teeth. Riku ran forward to help – and found himself wading through Heartless. Frustrated, he wished for Sora's Thundaga spell that would have cleared these out real quick. Instead he was forced to go through them, glimpsing with shock a new type of Heartless, long and cylinder in shape, and floating in the air, a yellow eye on either side of a diamond sharp point the only hint as to where the front was.

He found out a moment later that the point was as sharp as it looked as it dove into him with surprising speed. He hissed at the blood he could feel flowing and dispatched the Heartless with a couple of blows from Slender Thorns. More Heartless converged on him and he send out a flurry of Dark Auras to give him a moment to take a Hi-Potion, feeling the wound sealing up under its power, enough that it wouldn't cause him any problems.

Then thoughts were gone in the adrenaline rush of battle, moving by habit and instinct, with not thought as to what his blade was going through except that it was dark and a Heartless. He could have closed his eyes and still felt their darkness, seeping into the earth, and into his mind, still scrabbling for a hold on him that Sora and Kairi had made sure no one would ever have. He trusted in them more than he would ever trust in darkness again

He realized the battle was nearly over when he was jerked back to paying attention beyond the battle at Kairi's high pitched shriek of rage that turned into a howl. He absently destroyed another Heartless as he turned, eyes widening at the sight of the big bear laying still on the ground and Mowgli attacking Shere Khan with a fiery branch – which might have worked on a normal tiger, but Shere Khan held the power of darkness and batted the boy away easily, haunches gathered to jump after him – when Kairi was there, Keyblade half forgotten as she went for his throat.

He could only stare in horrified surprise as Kairi ripped the tiger's throat out, Light Flares also being sent in a deluge at the body of the tiger. It was Sora who pulled her off, teeth at the scruff of her neck as she stood growling over the body of the tiger.

He took a step forward – and saw Sora glancing at him, eyes widening in warning and surprise. It was all he needed to roll away and come up, cleaving the last Heartless in two, watching it slink into dark dust and a heart float up. Sighing, he glanced around and stepped toward Mowgli who was lying stunned on the ground. "Come on. Let's check on your friends."

He offered a hand, and his lips curled up into a half smile at the flash of anger he saw in Mowgli's eyes... but the boy took his hand anyway, recognizing his own need for help. He was growing up – which would be disappointing to his guardians... or his one living one.

* * *

After a tearful reunion when everyone realized Baloo was alive, they were all walking together again. But not for long, Riku had a feeling, as they heard gentle, human singing in the air. He glanced sideways at the enchanted expression on Mowgli's face and exchanged grins with his friends as they crept closer.

"A pretty face and even nicer words can turn anyone from the path they thought they belonged on," Kairi said quietly as Baloo tried to urge Mowgli back. She glanced aside at him, then toward Sora. Riku pursed his lips in an urge not to smile foolishly at the way Sora looked back at him. It had been as much actions as words, but it had been words and a silly face that had brought him home.

"He'll be fine," Sora assured the panther and bear as Mowgli picked up the jar. Baloo was looking forlorn and Riku glanced back at Mowgli – and his eyes widened as the jar began to glow. Kairi turned to look and he glanced at her, wondering if she could see it now. She looked at him, a question in her eyes and he waved one hand, smirking as Radiant Spirit came to her mouth. This time he heard the click – but there were no clouds, just a hint of sunlight over bright water.

"I guess we're out of here," Sora said, grinning as if Kairi had just won the Hades' Cup. "Nice job, Kairi."

Riku was glad to be going back to the gummi ship – if nothing else, he was missing the blush he knew should be on Kairi's face. "I'll race you two there."

"Sure, on thr- Hey!" Before Sora could finish, Riku had bolted, sprinting toward the transport circle they had passed on the way here. There was no way he could get there before them – but there was no harm in trying.

* * *

"I still can feel my teeth sinking into his throat," Kairi admitted as they lay on their beds, thankfully human and in such a mix of limbs Riku was surprised Kairi had slapped one of them by now. They had simply fallen onto their beds and each other and Riku was glad for it. Though he was getting his hand hit quite often – by Sora, who looked more amused than irritated as he slapped Riku's hand away from a zipper.

Riku didn't even mean to do it – they were there, and he was enjoying touching. It wasn't his fault that the zippers on Sora's clothes were too tempting and kept him from more skin. Absently unzipping a pocket and hooking a finger over the accessory trinket inside, he said, "Does it bother you? You were wolf, it _is_ kind of instinct."

"I didn't do that when I was a lion," Kairi said quietly. "I ate bugs and that carcass Sora had found for us, but I never killed with my teeth and claws. But here... I hunted rodents. They didn't speak, but they could have and I just hunted. Like... Like some common animal."

"Um... I didn't find it, Kairi. I hunted it," Sora said, sounding sheepish. Riku had to crane his head to catch a look at the faint blush on Sora's cheeks. He felt Kairi tense where his head lay on her stomach. Sora, who had lounged out as if he was still a great big cat, was half on top of both of them, limbs askew, and Riku could feel the sudden tension in him as well. He laid a hand on Sora's leg, just keeping it there, silent support.

"You... but the animals were sentient," she said, utterly still. He tensed himself, remembering asking that same question. And he hadn't seen a problem with it – it was the way on that world. But there was some horror in Kairi's voice and he curled his hand around Sora's leg, keeping him from shifting away.

"It was the way it was – the lions hunted," Riku pointed out.

Kairi shook her head and she looked at him, avoiding looking at Sora. "We aren't animals."

"We are when we're in their bodies. You ate grass quickly enough when you were a deer," Sora muttered. Despite Riku's hand on his leg, he rolled away from them; curling up with a tension in his back Riku only wished was anger.

"Grass can't speak," Kairi said, an edge to her voice.

"Nobodies speak," Sora said very quietly and Kairi stiffened. Sighing, Riku sat up.

"Sora's right, Kairi. It's all instinct. The animals accept it. Yes, they can speak but they are prey. I hunted too." He met her gaze levelly and Kairi bit her lip, still turned away.

"I'm sorry," she murmured quietly. "I don't want to fight with you, Sora. I just... I couldn't do it."

"Not unless someone was in danger," Riku muttered and she glanced at him, stricken.

Sora, either not hearing or pretending not to, shrugged and glanced back at her, his eyes dark with emotional distress. "I wouldn't want you to Kairi. I never asked you to help, I just... wanted you to know it's not that bad. We may not have been born animals, but we are animals when we enter those worlds, and the instincts are there to guide us. If we don't listen. We'll be out of place... or dead."

Riku saw Sora's eyes go distant and he frowned, eyeing his boyfriend. That sounded like the voice of experience there and since he wasn't dead, something else must have happened. He would dig at it deeper, when everyone was less tense. Off hand he said, "I've kidnapped people. I've killed. And to protect either of you, I'd kill anything and anyone. Dark, light, it doesn't matter if you two are in danger. Your sphere is just a bit larger than mine Kairi – and more selective in whom you killed. Shere Khan was only a step away from being a Heartless. I'm surprised he left a body at all and didn't just turn into darkness."

Both of them were silent at that, shock on Sora's face – though none on Kairi's, as if she knew too well that Riku would do absolutely anything for them. He glanced at Sora, waiting for it to sink in and saw Sora's gaze grow thoughtful – but there was no censure there. That was what he had been worried about. Sora didn't mind, and that was all that was important – then again, Riku still remembered the bloody body of Sephiroth, feathers everywhere. Sure, Sephiroth had survived, but Sora had the urge there too.

"We need a different topic," Sora announced when the silence went on too long. "I mean, jeez Kairi, I expect the doom and gloom from _Riku_, but you're better than that!"

Riku scowled, and Kairi giggled at his expression. He had to fight not to make it into a smirk upon seeing her happier. As long as they were happy and safe, that was what mattered.

* * *

The next world... it wasn't like anything Riku had seen before. It didn't seem like a world filled with darkness, but it did seem a bit dark, of a more ordinary kind. The city where their gummi ship said was the closest circle was larger than any city Riku had seen – even what he imagined Radiant Garden must have been like at full strength. And unlike most cities they had seen... this one wasn't pretty. It was grimy looking, with buildings that rose up out of the bottom of the city, all steel colored and forbidding. He curled his lips, because while he had seen cities before, being a born and bred island boy made it easy to choke on the polluted air that most cities seemed to give off in some form or another.

So when they transported down into some back alley in what Riku had a bad feeling was the wrong side of town, he was expected the air to smell bad and for Kairi's wrinkled nose. He wasn't expecting Sora to stumble and nearly go to his knees before Riku provided a steady source of support. "Sora?"

He studied his boyfriend, who didn't look bad off, more... shocked. And blinking rapidly, but not in any way looking unhappy. "Whoa. I... I've never really felt magic from the outside. Not really. Sometimes on my clothes I can feel it but here... It's like feeling Thunder and Fire all around. This city... it's powered by magic."

Riku blinked at Kairi, who had her eyes closed, her breathing deep – and then she gasped too. "He's right. Oh... It's... There's magic _everywhere_."

"Can you two move? Will this distract you?" he asked sharply, suddenly afraid he would have to leave them on the ship – or Sora at least. Kairi seemed to have to concentrate to feel it. He couldn't risk dragging Sora around if the boy wasn't going to be all there.

Sora shook his head as if to clear it. "I'll be alright. It's just... kinda odd. And weird but... it's not a bad weird. Doesn't feel bad. I'm surprised the place looks so bad with all the magic they're using."

Riku shrugged, not wanting to say the words that came to mind – no matter what kind of power was used, it would be used for the good of those who wielded it first, and trickle down to those below after. Likely with magic so in use, people higher up on the food chain were living in luxury while people in the area they had landed in... Well, he could guess. "Let's get moving."

The city wasn't grimy, as he had first thought. It was clean... just nothing besides the roads were taken care of. The houses and buildings were old and practically falling apart. Animals he saw were half starved and either eyed each other as if to attack and eat, or them as if they would give up food. The way Sora kept twitching at each pathetic glance, he was going to bet half their munny they didn't have any food left by the time this world was closed.

"Odd. I wonder why it's like this? The air smells polluted, but everything looks clean..." Kairi murmured, looking around thoughtfully.

"Might not be this part of the city that's causing the pollution," Riku muttered as they turned a corner. All three of them froze at the distant human shapes at the other end of the street. "We could ask them, of course."

They were met part way there, two men and a bunch of children gathering curiously in their path. One man was dressed in a red cloak, hints of black underneath when it fluttered as he walked. Riku glanced toward Sora on his left at a movement from the boy and saw him regarding the dark haired man with his crimson cloak oddly. Riku shrugged, figuring he would ask later. The other man, with a gun casually leaning against his shoulder, was the one Riku cared about.

Despite the carefree grin, the man had a gun... even if the cowboy hat made him look a bit... different. Long coat that probably held a lot of hidden pockets inside, and didn't hide the graceful movements that Riku had seen often enough to know it was grace from battle, not from dancing... Though Sora had proved they could be translated one to another.

"Haven't seen you three around here. Where'd you come from?" the man said cheerfully, and Riku expected Sora to jump in with the usual excuse that Riku couldn't believe most people just took for granted, that they didn't question his cheerful, all too true explanations.

Instead what came out was a more subdued, "Do you know someone named Cloud?"

Riku jerked his head to stare in shock at his friend, who flushed under the sudden stares he was getting. "Sorry. I didn't... Stupid question. He just had a cloak and it kind of looked like yours so... It just came out."

Sora shrugged, embarrassed but cheerful and Riku shot a glance over at the other two, not expecting the wide eyes of the man with light brown hair. He shifted, feeling more wary by the second as the man asked quietly, "Cloud Strife?"

"Um, yeah. So... So you do know him?" Sora's whole demeanor seemed to brighten, a grin stretching easily onto his face. Friends of his friends and all that – Riku wasn't so trusting and despite the grin that spread on the face of the man in the hat, he didn't think the other men were either.

"I gave him that cape as a going away present," the black haired man said flatly, studying Sora intently with crimson eyes. Riku glanced over at Kairi who met him with worried blue eyes. She didn't like that look either.

"Oh. Is this... Did Cloud come from here?" Riku looked at Sora sharply, startled by the question. He had thought Cloud came from Radiant Garden, just like the others. He resisted the urge to ask Sora about it – they could do it later.

"Sure. He and Sephiroth went off with Zack. Tifa tried to follow – Never did know if she made it or not. Though there were rumors of Cloud and Sephiroth here and fighting." The brown haired man looked amused at that.

Sora looked thoughtful, tilting his head. "Would that have been about a year ago?"

Now there was just silence and Riku shifted uneasily, one hand straying outward, ready to call his Keyblade. Though the man with the shotgun was intent on Sora, the man wrapped in a cloak with no weapon in sight noticed the movement and switched attention to him as his companion asked, "Who are you?"

"Sora. I'm the – mmph." Riku grinned at Sora's halfhearted glare. Both he and Kairi had moved in unison, each moving a hand to cover Sora's mouth.

"Irvine. Me and Vince here keep track of all the orphans in these parts," The man said casually, making his black haired companion twitch.

"Vincent," came the correction, but Irvine just grinned, mischief in his gaze.

"Riku," he said after a moment where three gazes fixed on him. Sora had stopped glaring and was instead studying the children huddled behind the men with sympathy clear in his eyes. "We're just passing through."

"I'm Kairi," Kairi added, also turning her gaze onto the children with pity in her eyes. Riku grimaced, but couldn't blame them. There had to be about half a dozen children behind the two men. The oldest looked only around eight, and already had two of the smaller children in hand, bossing them around quietly, her blond hair in a severe braid as she protected the younger ones. Riku felt another pang of guilt as he remembered so easily giving up his own parents.

"Come on. Let's show you 'passerbys' the city. Maybe a place to stay out of sight while you get used to the place, huh?" Irvine's gaze was wholly amused, as if he knew something they didn't. Riku narrowed his eyes, not trusting these people.

"Sure!" Sora agreed before he could voice his rejection. Kairi was no help, still gazing with deep sympathy at the children.

It was with great reluctance that he followed the two men and the children down the too-clean streets that apparently felt like magic he couldn't feel. The coincidences were staggering – too much for him, in fact. He moved carefully, hyper aware of their surroundings even as Sora followed them easily, too trusting by far and Kairi was too focused on the children.

Except after a minute of scolding his friends in his mind, he noticed the grace in Sora's walk that was only there when he was ready for a fight, and the way the friendly smile barely reached his eyes. His gaze moved around as if curious – but like Riku he was noting every alley, every window where the curtain twitched a bit more than the non-existent wind could account for. Kairi wasn't watching her surroundings – but she was studying the men and the children intently, the same way she studied her magic – like she would figure it out or else.

Knowing his friends weren't being that naive, he was able to relax slightly – and that would be when the Heartless attacked. Somehow, he wasn't surprised to see even the children pull out weapons. Irvine was yelling orders to them as well. "Quistis, keep Zell and Zidane from diving in. Marlene, Denzel, stay close to Vincent. Kiros, grab Zidane when he tries to bolt."

Riku didn't think of what it meant, that Irvine was used to how the children responded to it all. He and his friends had taken the opposite edge of the cluster of children from Irvine and Vincent – the latter which had pulled a gun from somewhere beneath his cloak, a beautiful thing of silver and death. Riku had no time to study it – Slender Thorn was in his hand before the first child attacked.

Then they were in the midst of it and he was trying to keep track of the children and his friends at the same time. It wasn't working so well when Heartless swarmed over him, some of types he had never before seen, others of types that were knew. The cylinder shapes ones were there, spinning into him, faster than he could catch. The sound of Thundaga reached his ears and he smirked, whirling around. He took a moment to down a Hi-Potion in a single instant that there was no Heartless in immediate range.

Just as the last drop went down his throat Heartless descended from above. He ducked beneath the swipes of a Wyvern in the initial wave but found two more smashing him into the ground right behind it. Claws tore through his clothes and skin like butter and he let out a shout of pain before he could muffle it. He had no idea why or how there were so many strong Heartless here but he pushed hard against the ground, grabbing onto the neck of the closest Wyvern as it took to the air again. Wrapping one hand around its neck, the other held Slender Thorn as he slashed through its body. It disappeared beneath his arm and suddenly he was in free fall, the breath coming harshly in his lungs as multiple wounds bled out. Something hit him hard as he fell – then another as he slashed at that one, and suddenly three or four or maybe a half dozen Wyverns were taking turns smashing into him, not letting him hit the ground or more than glance blows off of their hides.

Then there was a flash of power, pulling on him – and returning it three fold. Something in his mind whispered a delighted, _'Final Form'_ as the world turned silver. The Keyblade seemed to shiver in response, coming alive in his hand. It moved not where he directed his hands, but moved on his impulses, out of his hand to strike at the closest Heartless. And he could feel Kairi and Sora, blurs of power. Some of his energy had been taken to make this – but not enough to matter, not with the powers returned. He noticed Slender Thorn didn't quite move like Sora's Keyblades, and he could feel Sora's agreement in his mind. Sora's blades whirled around him, moving either where Sora directed or in defense of Sora. Slender Thorn always came back to his hand, and moved with his thoughts, but not always to those Heartless closest – it couldn't sense what was behind him anymore than he could.

Now he could feel the magic around him, mostly through Sora who was naturally centered and whose powers weren't steeped in Twilight and things that didn't quite fit. Naturally centered - and neither he nor Kairi actually realized what that meant until just then. He could feel Kairi's envy, the joy at it all and both of them thinking as they fought, _'And he doesn't even _realize

The Heartless went down and faded away, barely an effort now. Even when they did hit, it didn't matter. It was just a bit of blood and he caught an edge of worry from Sora that he smoothed out. The wounds were nothing, and look what they were _doing_. To think he had once looked to darkness for power – it had nothing on this power and sense of _completeness_. He wanted it to go on forever – and Kairi did too. Behind it, he could even feel the edge of Naminé and Roxas.

The last Heartless disappeared and he felt Sora try to banish Final Form. _'No,'_ he said firmly – or thought, really, and felt Kairi echo it. But there was worry in Sora's mind and in his voice. "Guys... This will drain us. I can't even – Our thoughts are all muddled together, I can barely think."

It wasn't that bad – not to Riku, not to Kairi. Damn, even Naminé seemed to passively like it. But Roxas added his own voice, angry and lashing out. _'Don't be stupid. It will fade either way. Hang on to it like this and you're likely to damage yourself... Or at least Sora. It's him this is running off of.'_

Immediately, now that Roxas had pointed it out, Riku could see the strain in Sora's face, in his thoughts and guiltily he jerked back, let Sora fade them back to normal, struggling not to grab at the strands of emotions that weren't his. It would have been nice... to always know what they were thinking. To always know they wanted to be around.

Except without Final Form's effects on them, Riku realized with a sudden dizziness that he had forgotten to heal the whole battle. He ended up on his knees, hands pressed to his sides. His jacket was stained red in multiple places and Kairi gasped as she stumbled toward him – not injured, or at least no like him, just exhausted. Sora barely made it before collapsing to his knees. "Sorry, I... Nothing for Curaga. Hi-Potions, got some of those..."

He had multiple Hi-Potions stuck in his face – including one from unfamiliar hands. He took Sora's first, downing it quickly – and then another, and another, until he had taken one from everyone and a Cure spell from Kairi and the wounds were mostly healed. Except he had still lost blood and he couldn't have moved if he wanted to. It was then Vincent spoke. "You've been poisoned. We have no antidotes."

Those red eyes looked at them silently, almost expectantly but Riku just stared. They didn't have antidotes either and Irvine sighed after a moment. "Well, by the look of you three, you're strong and healthy. Let's get you safe and see to it that you survive this."

Sora tensed next to him, but neither of them could have risen – or should have been able to. Sora tried, struggling, mouth working to demand explanations... And then his eyes rolled back into his head and Vincent caught him as if he had been expecting it. Irvine chuckled. "Magically exhausted – used Thundaga so many times before you three went all silver, then during it too. I don't think we'll be attacked anymore. Need some help?"

He wanted to refuse – but Vincent was already moving with Sora and Riku needed to follow. He glanced at Kairi, too shaky herself to help him, and he reluctantly accepted Irvine's hand up and his support down the street.

He made it only about ten steps before collapsing himself.

* * *

End Chapter. Oh, and for all those who were interested in the Sephiroth battles, I posted it up on Missing: Vagabonds.


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy.

Author's Note: This isn't Midgar. I did take some ideas from Midgar, but this is Kingdom Hearts. There is no Midgar. There are some ideas - mainly one - that's similar to something in FF, but I assure you it's not unique to that game. Actually on a second thought as I look at the idea, Miranda from Serenity comes to mind. Anyway.

Beta: Thanks to chiiaroscuro for being my beta, even while she's so busy!

* * *

Chapter 23

Magical exhaustion was, supposedly, easily fixed. Some rest and he was supposed to be all better. Except when Sora woke up over a day later and asked how Riku was, rest was out of the question. He spent the day pacing his room - mostly because he wasn't allowed out of it until they were sure he could walk without stumbling. As he learned after a few circuits of pacing this wasn't yet true.

Kairi slipped in after he had been left his lunch, smiling at him in understanding sympathy. "Not the most fun thing, magical exhaustion. You have it better than I did. I kept trying to use my magic, making it worse."

"Kairi," he whined, not caring about his own problem. He wanted to know more important things. "Riku... They said he was poisoned?"

He waited anxiously with bated breath as Kairi's eyes shifted away. "Yeah. I'm sorry."

"Sorry? About what?" For a moment, he was panicked - but Roxas mentally was calming him. Or insulting him, he wasn't quite sure which, but there was a pointed comment about the bracelet either way and he glanced down, breath rushing out in relief. There was a lot of yellow, and it had shades of nearly black yellow that made him worried. He had never seen it so dark before.

"If I had learned Esuna before this... If I hadn't gone to learn spells I thought were more useful, I could have healed him already," Kairi said quietly and he stared a moment in surprise, his worry about Riku compounded with worry for Kairi. He took a step forward and pulled her quickly into a hug.

"He'll be okay. It's not your fault, we couldn't have known there were Heartless with poison now. I think... It's kind of obvious there are new kinds. We've never been poisoned before, Kairi. I've fallen into acid, but that's about... what?" He shifted at her strange look, trying not to flush. She had been in his heart at the time - didn't she remember?

"I'm surprised you're not rushing off to see him now that I'm here," she said slowly. He blinked, letting it sink in - and then grinned.

Despite how weak he still felt he was out the door in seconds, sneaking across the floor. Kairi was whispering as they did on what had been happening. "Irvine and Vincent have been traveling to what looks like the better part of the city - all the shiny buildings to the west? - trying to see if there are any antidotes left. They call it the Steel Death. Not sure why, but I'm guessing we should avoid that part of the city. Everything's dead anyway."

He looked at her in shock, to see her face sad and sympathetic and he wondered with a chill if this was what Cloud had meant - he had said his world was dead, thanks to Sephiroth. And... They had met people, but though everything looked like it was working, and felt like it was working... But maybe there was no one running it. "Sephiroth did this."

"Yes, he... I'll explain later. Let's just go see Riku." Kairi lapsed into silence and he followed obediently. Both froze as they came closer to a set of stairs - Sora hadn't even known he was on the second floor - and voices drifted up.

"They're special, Irvine. Anyone can see that. Three kids who just suddenly show up and fight Heartless with those strange blades? And the magic around them? There's destiny there." The woman's voice was firm and Sora inched closer, just knowing they were talking about him and his friends.

Irvine's voice was clear and sharp as they went closer to the railing and glanced down. "You said it Rinoa - three kids. They're teenagers. And they're powerful, but we can't just let them go without saying anything. If they have a destiny then they need help, because we all know that destiny sucks. They'll get screwed over in the end."

"I'm not saying we shouldn't help them! I'm just saying when the boy heals if they want to leave we have to let them! We can't keep them here! They're from another world - who knows how many people they could save!" The woman sounded peevish; as if this was an argument they'd had many times already. Sora didn't understand it at all - they both wanted to help but in different ways. Why not let them choose? They weren't children, no matter what Irvine said.

"And I don't want to find out they got themselves killed using some new technique so they didn't even realize they were injured! Because that's what happened! They lost themselves in whatever that was and only Sora seemed to realize there were negative effects!" He fell silent and then sighed. "I know they can take care of themselves, and they have to. But I don't like seeing another group of kids running off to their deaths because they think they have to. I talked to Kairi and they're learning magic at a rate I haven't seen since... Actually, I don't think I've ever seen it. I just think... They should be living their lives. Not having control over forces that can destroy them. Sora exhausted himself, but he used more magic in a span of a few minutes to kill most people from exhaustion. Especially kids."

"They aren't orphans or children needing to be kept here for their own safety," Rinoa returned softly. "All we can do is guide them a little. What does Vincent say?"

"Vince never says much, but he and Barret seem to agree - they think we should have just left them in the street." Irvine sounded angry and Kairi was tugging on his arm now but Sora leaned over more to get a glimpse of Irvine, his cowboy hat tossed to one side and long hair loose. Sora blinked at how handsome he looked and jerked back at the thought.

"They say that, but they're soft at heart. They wouldn't have done it. Vincent... I'm surprised he isn't suggesting..." The voices trailed off into incoherent mumbles as Kairi dragged him down the hallway. Over boards that creaked under her feet and made no sounds under his. He smiled sheepishly at her dirty look and went in front, throwing looks over his shoulder to see her intent on the way he stepped and walked. She was quieter, much quieter than most people... But she still wasn't silent yet. She would get it though; Kairi was as determined as they were.

He didn't want to dwell on the conversation, feeling his lip curl out into a pout. They weren't children. Leon had never treated him like a child - not really. He understood their destiny and let them be, doing what he could to help. It had never occurred what it must look like to adults who didn't know about the Keyblades or what they were doing - or to adults who didn't care about destiny.

It didn't matter either - Sora knew, with an almost sick feeling sometimes, that there were few normal people that could give them a challenge, never mind beat them. He was only too glad when Kairi indicated a door, partly open already.

He peeked inside first; not touching the door until he was sure no one was in there. Only then did he pull Kairi inside and shut the door with a click behind them. "How's he been doing?"

"Fighting. They say he's slowly getting better, and he won't die from it, but he could be weeks recovering at best, without an antidote. No one knows what other permanent effects it might even have. Very few survive it without an antidote, they said," Kairi said, her voice hushed.

Sora walked over to the bed, pulling Kairi with him until he could stare at Riku's too-still frame. He was paler than Sora had ever seen him. He reached out a hand and almost snatched it back at the burning heat enveloping his boyfriend's body. Instead he pressed his hand down, smoothing hair from his face and biting his lip until he tasted blood. It still didn't distract him from the sudden feeling of helplessness and guilt. "There's nothing we can do?"

"It's an antidote or nothing. No one knows magic here. Not anymore - everyone who did, everyone who had magic in their veins... had it pulled out of them. The shock... Most just died right there, or lost the will to live when all their magic was pulled out of them." There was a note of horror in Kairi's voice as she recited facts they must have told her. He was surprised there was anyone left alive, if that was the case - the magic in the air sunk into him, calling to him, telling him despite his exhaustion a little magic was always a good thing... But he knew better than to listen.

"Why didn't they...?" He looked over his shoulder, eyes facing the direction of where the stairs had been, and the people beneath it.

"Never used magic in their life, or never had enough of the products that contained undiluted magical substances for it to affect them. Not much anyway - I managed to get Rinoa to tell me that Vincent nearly did die. She has no idea how Irvine kept him from it, none of them do. And talkative as he is... Irvine doesn't talk about anything important." He didn't have to look to know there was frustrated furrow on her forehead, but he did anyway, grinning at her clenched teeth, furrowed brow and fisted hands.

"They don't have to tell us everything," Sora pointed out. If Irvine didn't want to talk about something in the past, as long as it had no bearing on the situation, Sora was fine with it. He didn't need to know everyone's secrets to know Irvine and Vincent were good guys.

"No, I guess not. I'm just used to people being more accommodating towards us, I guess. Even on Atlantis, they were pretty open about their hostilities. And everyone else was usually a friend of yours. These are strangers that aren't telling us a thing. It just feels... weird." She shifted where she stood next to him and he hesitantly put an arm around her. She leaned into him gratefully and he sighed in relief, shifting her closer. Her eyes were on Riku again now, and he had to wonder if her mind had really been on the people downstairs.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be here to help watch over him before this," Sora said quietly, hugging her close. Despite the fact he had been told Riku was getting better, there was too much heat beneath his hand that was still on Riku's face. Despite whatever Irvine said when he found them, he didn't plan on moving from this room until he was better – and only then to search for an antidote. It was unnatural for Riku to be sitting so still.

"If you had tried to come see him before I would have dragged you back to bed," she said pointedly. "A full day asleep – I don't even want to know how you got yourself that exhausted."

"Says the girl who collapsed trying to heal me not _that_ long ago," he said reasonably. "Plus... it's hard to notice how low my reserves are in Final Form. Changing itself takes a lot out, but returns so much energy... it's amazing. But... I don't think we should do it very often."

He felt her stiffen a little and looked down at her seriously – and was a little surprised at how much farther down it was becoming. He would never be as tall as Riku would be – but it was still a shock to realize he was still growing. But not quite enough of one to deter him from continuing doggedly, "You two react weird to Final Form. It's good in an emergency and to keep Anti Form away... but Riku didn't even notice he was injured. And you... I could feel it Kairi. I could feel both of you and neither of you would have cared about anything if we could have just stayed that way. I... It is tempting, to me too. But we aren't ourselves like that."

"Is it so wrong to want a connection to you two forever?" Kairi asked, her voice barely audible. He smiled at her wistfully.

That wasn't the problem at all, and he groped for the words that would explain it. He wasn't even sure exactly how he had known, even while a part of him had reveled in that deeper connection to them. How wrong it was. It was Roxas' brief touch on his mind that made him understand. "I'd love a permanent connection to you guys – but not at the cost of losing our identity. Some of us have fought too hard to keep it."

His own eyes strayed to Riku, remembering him wearing Xehanort's face, but it was Roxas' he was really thinking of, the Nobody struggling between completion and identity. The Nobody's pleased happiness at his acknowledgement – and agreement – of his fight to stay separate was a warm strength that made it easier to not apologize at Kairi's stricken look.

"I'm sorry. I didn't even think about what Riku would have gone through... But he was reaching for it too..." She trailed off, eyeing Riku – and then her head whipped around and he could almost see the quiet voice in her head pointing out Riku hadn't been the only one to fight for his identity – not when Riku would have gladly lost it for his friends. "Roxas? You're talking about Roxas. And Riku but mostly... Sora, they are supposed to be one with us. I'm not even sure this separation with have with them is natural. Especially when... When Naminé seems to not only be convinced but accepting of the fact she'll fade."

Sora tensed and for a horrible moment had a twisted image of Roxas fading, that space in their heart and mind all gone, and no voice struggling to be heard, that struggle that had become so smooth and easy, but separate and he felt Roxas own panic grow and Sora jerked back a little from Kairi. "Roxas won't fade!"

"Maybe not," Kairi said sadly, agreeing and confusing both he and Roxas. "But... It makes sense. That you two could fight something that seemed so natural, like our thoughts joining in Final Form. And I have to apologize. It strained your magic some to keep us separated, didn't it? That's what took most of your energy, not just overusing the spells."

He shrugged helplessly at her searching gaze. "There's nothing to apologize for – I don't really remember what cost me all that energy. It was kind of one draining thing after another, you know? Physically, mentally, magically – I just needed rest. Not like Riku."

Both their gazes went back to Riku and they went quiet, contemplating their sleeping friend. Sora knew it couldn't be long before they let him move around a bit more. He would keep watch on Riku for a day, maybe two, until they were convinced he was healthy. It would allow Kairi to go off and do her own exploring. He trusted her by herself, she wasn't as foolish as he or Riku. Then when they were convinced he was fine, they would switch.

Right now, as he casually pulled himself and Kairi to sit on the edge of the bed, he pretended that they weren't right and that just simply standing hadn't tired him so. It was a bit harder to lie to himself when Kairi slipped off the bed and slipped covers over him as he curled up beside Riku, his breathing already evening out. A little more sleep couldn't hurt.

* * *

Riku had barely woken, and most of it had been fever dreams. Rinoa put on a pretty smile and told him Riku was getting better and Sora smiled back in relief and pretended he believed her when Riku's fever hadn't changed a bit. It hadn't gone up – but it hadn't gone down. He noticed both Vincent and Irvine were conspicuously silent on the subject and the man Barret... Well, Sora didn't know what to think of the man with a gun attached to the stump of his arm.

The first thing he did when he was declared as healthy as he was going to get was go find Kairi. That led to quite a shock and he watched with wide, admiring eyes as the girl went into battle in efficient movements that still seemed a lot more graceful for all her less experience than he or Riku's. Maybe it was the efficiency – she wasn't prone to the same larger swings as he was with all his strength behind them. It was closer to Riku's, but she didn't have as much stabbing – it was mostly just slashes, quick and deadly.

He pondered stepping in – but when something crackled around her hands and then her body he stayed put, eyes white as white power seemed to flow around her in a wave, crumbling outward – and then suddenly dropping off, just fading as Kairi's knees seemed to buckle. All the Heartless around were destroyed – but he wouldn't have noticed if there was one around somewhere as he raced to Kairi's side, swinging a supporting arm around her to keep her standing.

"I still can't get that to work right," she cried out in frustration as she stood, not exhausted like he had feared, just having dropped from the sudden loss of energy. He had to frown at her exclamation and tilted his head, looking down at her. He let her lean on him, pleased that she trusted him enough to completely relax. It wouldn't have been such a surprise months ago – but she was more than capable of taking care of herself now. It didn't mean Sora didn't want to do it for her sometimes.

Once she was standing on her own and not leaning so bad he asked, "What was that?"

Her eyes darted to him – and then away, sliding to the side. He ducked his head down to look her straight in the eyes, not liking the nervous way her hands gripped Radiant Spirit. "Kairi?"

"Remember on my birthday? There's one present I've still been trying to learn," she said, her voice soft and hesitant. It took him a moment to remember what present she was talking about – he didn't think it was Cloud's animal trusting present. He stiffened slowly, and tried not to apologize when she stepped away from him. "It is powerful, Sora."

"It's also from Sephiroth," he muttered, looking around at the world they were in, the empty buildings, the skyscrapers that formed, huge offices and factories and who knew what else. "He did this."

"I know what he did. And I know how he did it. And... this didn't do it. Not by itself. He amplified it thousands of times more and mixed it with two other spells. Please Sora – I need to do this. It's powerful enough that it could make our battles ten times easier." She stared at him, her eyes so wide and earnest that he couldn't help it. He smiled at her, grudging but true and she grinned in delight.

"I guess I have no real say in what you do anyway. You could never use it the way he did anyway. You don't have the darkness he did... But how do you know that he used it at all, Kairi?" he asked, feeling that he needed to know the answer. It was important somehow.

"I asked Irvine. He was... so close to it, Sora. Actually tried to shoot Sephiroth out of the sky. Climbed to the tallest building, stood on the roof, and tried to shoot him down. He saw it all. What Sephiroth did... He altered the spells. Used the buried parts of them that make them work and warped them into something new. Holy, to cleanse. Meteor, for judgment, and Ultima... Ultima is pure magic. It has no element – it's just magic. Meteor seeks its enemies, and even the normal one can hit multiple enemies. Sephiroth had it hit anything that had a trace of Ultima in it – he warped them together. Anyone who had magic in their blood... but that wouldn't kill everyone with magic. No, meteor sought them out, but it didn't even get time to touch them, it wasn't the part that... cleansed the magic from their blood. Holy made them pure." Throughout the explanation, Kairi stared at the ground. Sora was stunned – that's what Sephiroth had done? It was horrible... and there was a bit of it that was like an _art form_. He didn't want to think it, but it was true. To balance them so perfectly and amplify them without losing that balance – Ultima seeking out its own, Meteor locking on and Holy cleansing – it was like an art. A horrible, deadly art and Sora felt sick.

"It can't do that now, right?" he asked, staring off to the side, where there had before been Heartless... before they were cleansed.

"No. It normally cleanses darkness. It can hurt other things; because almost everything has a bit of darkness in them, but it can't... do what Sephiroth did with it. Take the magic out of us." She tried a small smile. "I wouldn't be using it otherwise. I would never risk you like that."

He stared at her for that, tilting his head. "What do you mean?"

She gave a bigger smile at that, light coming back into her eyes. "Sora, you're the most magical of us. I'm getting there, but... it's so effortless for you. If you weren't so good with your Keyblades, I'd say you should spend all your time on magic. Even if you are geared toward battle magic."

He shrugged, grinning back at her, and nearly flushing at the praise. "It's not so effortless with Curaga and defensive magic. You're learning a lot faster with Cura than I did – you're nearly at Curaga yourself and I wouldn't be surprised if you can go a step past that. You and Riku... I just picked up the spells, you two are the ones who are clever with them."

"We're clever with them before battle. During battle? Not quite so much. During fights, I just... fight. Smaller ones it's easier but in the big battles, I'm not quite so clever." She looked so downcast, but he couldn't help but laugh.

"Kairi, all of us lose our heads when we're fighting for our lives. You're better than you think." He began to walk, aimless on where to go and she started beside him, smiling at him.

"Thank you," she said simply, and he knew the conversation was over. The lapsed into comfortable silence, but his eyes continued to drift over to one section of the city. Many buildings had fallen down against each other. Irvine liked to try and call the city the City of Graves, but Sora didn't think it was true – except for that part. If there was one part of the city that could be called truly dead, it was the section marked by North River Street, what had once been home to the greatest scientific minds of planet, or so he had been told.

"Come on, the house is this way," Kairi said and he jerked his eyes away from the buildings to meet her steady gaze. With one last glance back, he turned back toward the house where Riku lay unconscious. A niggling idea was forming in the back of his mind, but he didn't want to do anything foolish.

* * *

Fortunately, Sora's idea of foolish wasn't quite the same as everyone else's and the fact that anyone would have called him crazy for attempting the most unstable part of the city didn't even occur to Sora as he stood at the intersection of North River and another smaller street. If there were an antidote anywhere, it would be in one of these buildings. He had looked quickly through the books in Irvine's house to see what one might look like. That had been yesterday, and he hadn't been able to get away before just an hour ago.

Breathing deep, he stepped into the street, firmly telling himself that the street wasn't unsteady, that was his imagination – it was only the buildings that were unsteady.

_'Unless even the ground beneath the streets is falling apart,'_ Roxas suddenly suggested, obviously amused. Sora scowled, but his step steadied and he strode toward the tallest building. He would start there first.

_'This is probably a bad idea. There might be nothing there. You know Riku will heal eventually,'_ Roxas said. The Nobody didn't really seem to disapprove – more as if he was trying to distract Sora from thinking about it too much. There was a sulky flare of denial, but Sora grinned anyway. He appreciated the effort, and tried to convey that. "I doubt Riku wants to be stuck in that bed forever. And I need something to do too. It's boring in the house!"

_'I'll remember you say that when we're dead,'_ Roxas responded and Sora stepped into the building. He shouldn't have been so surprised to see the torn apart walls, the ceiling that was mostly caved in and evidence that the building was only kept up because it was leaning against another and slowly crushing it beneath it's weight. It was a depressing thought.

_'Then don't think it. Just start looking,'_ Roxas said sharply, and Sora grinned.

"Bossy," he grumbled, but went further into the building to begin his search.

* * *

Sora had actually found multiple bottles of what could be antidotes. However, he kept looking because some of them looked different and he wanted to know he had the right one. As he went further up the stairs, a memory of a conversation flew by, but it was elusive and he was too focused to try and catch it. Something told him that it would end up being important, but he didn't have the time.

Near the top of the building, he avoided a sagging spot on the floor, Keyblade in hand. To his dismay, he had found that beasts from outside the city had snuck into the uninhabited parts and they were a little vicious. Some he had fended off, but a few he had to kill. They didn't drop munny, but one had swallowed a bottle that was miraculously unharmed. He didn't know what was in the bottle, but he had dropped it into his pockets with the rest of them. His pockets were quickly filling up.

There were other things of interest in the building. Mostly it had seemed to be a testing facility for potions and healing items and all sorts of magical liquids that were put in bottles but he had found an odd room or two here and there that he wasn't sure if they were someone's hobby room or an office. The one filled with guns had reminded him or Irvine and Vincent and he had carefully had to choose what looked like the best weapons out of the bunch for them. Fortunately they had labels and seemed to be going from worst to best, of various types of guns. Sora had seen theirs enough to know what they looked like and that was it.

He had to find a bag for them and other objects he found lying around. There was a room that had books on magical theory, mostly in relation to their work on potions and antidotes. Considering his own ambitions of the future, he had selected a few of those to bring with him. Picking up random little objects like this led to him having both pockets full of bottles and carrying a bag around with him. He left it on the sturdiest part of the floor he could find when he ventured into new territory, but he knew he should be hurrying more than he was. The closer he climbed to the top of the building, the more unstable it looked.

The bottom of the building had been relatively fine, but on the top floor, there were broken windows, broken support beams, and ceiling that either had or were in the process of caving in. _'I think we have enough antidotes.'_

Roxas had said that before. Sora had agreed before. The fact was, neither Nobody or Somebody really had the will to leave just yet. Away from their friends, the need to explore had taken over, and there wasn't anyone to tell them to stop. No one but Roxas, but his heart wasn't in it. Literally, considering Sora was his heart and was intent on just finishing one more room. "C'mon Roxas – We're almost done! And we can give the extras to Irvine and the kids!"

_'We can, but I don't think anything new will be up here – What's that?'_ Sora's eyes had nearly moved over the dark little part of the hallway as he stepped out of an empty room. Or mostly empty room. There had been a desk and chairs, and an open window letting the rain in. It was beginning to storm outside, which didn't make Sora want to go back through the streets any more than it usually would. The building was sheltered enough that if he didn't want to get the antidote to Riku once he had collected them all, he would have stayed and waited out the storm.

Sora studied the corner for a moment before picking up the bag of items with a cheerful, "Let's find out!"

Roxas snorted quietly in his mind, but he wasn't objecting as Sora stepped into the shadows and found a stairwell. Darker than the others had been, he did pause before climbing it – but the worst they had found were beasts so far and the odd small group of Heartless that had tracked them there. So up they went.

_'Didn't Kairi mention Irvine climbing this building? It is the tallest.'_ Roxas sudden reminder was what had been bothering Sora and he stopped, hand lingering on the doorway he had found at the top of the stairs. There was no floor above this, so... This was the roof. The roof where Irvine had stood to attempt to shoot down Sephiroth, to little effect. He opened the door and stepped through, ducking his head against the stormy wind and moving forward. He dropped the bag by the door as he explored. It was a large roof – and in the middle of it there was a weighted down box. There was some kind of electronic locking device on it – and of course, where there was a lock, he had a key.

Ultima glowed with light as it normally did when it was pointed at a lock, and the box opened half an inch. He didn't dismiss the Keyblade, too wary about what he would find in a box at the top of the tallest building, obviously hidden here for some purpose – but he didn't know what the purpose was. Stepping closer, he was wary of a trap, but curiosity overrode it as he used the tip of the Keyblade to flip it open.

Inside were four pieces of paper. Two sat square in the middle of the box, while the other two sat on the right, both held down by bottles. He didn't know what was in the bottles, but the pieces of paper looked awfully familiar. There was a space left in the left side as if there would have been two more pieces of paper. He crouched down and somehow wasn't surprised when on the top of the one in the middle, the word _Ultima_ was written in elegant script. And beneath it – directions, written in a similar style to what he had seen on Sephiroth's gift to Kairi. And if that one was Ultima – he looked to the right nd somehow the word sent a chill down his spine, slithering as the word _Meteor_ stared up at him. All three of the spells that had destroyed so much of this world had been written in this box.

_'You could lock it back up. It's unlikely anyone could find it – or leave it here in the storm. Surely the rain will destroy it. Leave it alone, Sora,'_ Roxas urged, fighting against his own as well as Sora's strange urge to reach out and take them both, tuck Meteor into his pockets and read Ultima, read the words on the two small pages.

"Look – the rain doesn't even touch them. There's some kind of spell on them. Or – no, there's something more than that. I don't think it's magic – maybe the ink and paper is waterproof?" Curiosity urged him forward, just to touch it and he wanted to obey Roxas' urge to leave it alone, but somehow his fingers were moving the bottles, tucking them into his pockets. The wind almost took Ultima as he folded up meteor and placed it in with the bottled but hands fast from battle snatched one – and the wind began to take the other.

With a frustrated cry he leapt after it, neared the edge of the building – and another hand caught the paper, one with a longer reach than him. Another hand pulled him back and he took a step away from the edge to steady himself before looking up into crimson eyes. Nervously, he brushed a hand to the back of his neck, scratching there as if that could get rid of the nerves. "Uh... Hi Vincent."

Silently, Vincent handed over the piece of paper. "You should not have unlocked it."

He gave him a confused look, tilting his head. "Why did you give it back then?"

"Better you than someone else," the man replied coolly, and he frowned at the intense gaze Vincent was giving him but then shrugged it off. Sure, it made him squirm a bit inside, but he was holding one of the spells that had nearly destroyed this world – and the man in front of him.

"So, uh, how did – " Sora was cut off by a sudden beeping noise from the box. He whirled around, eyes wide, and had a sudden sense of dread brought on by Roxas screeching, _'I told you to leave it alone!'_

"_This area will self-destruct in one minute. Have a pleasant death._" For a moment, Sora hoped that it had said day – but the voice coming out of it was a familiar smooth male voice and Sora reminded himself to go punch Sephiroth next time they stopped in Radiant Garden. After that, however, instinct took over.

Running side by side with Vincent for a few steps, he managed to snag his bag before jumping off the roof– or really, running off the roof. He was glad of the tilt of the building, just enough that it wasn't vertical, which didn't matter so much to him – but Vincent didn't have his gliding abilities. Using Wisdom Form had taught him how to run faster and he took Vincent with him not as he ran toward the street and the way he had come in – but toward a building just across the main street.

He glanced at the man by his side, who was watching him briefly and both their gazes flicked to the building before back to each other. He hoped he saw understanding there – because he had a few moments to tie the bag to his shoulder before his feet hit the building and he remembered The World That Never Was and the feeling of weightlessness, that he could do anything. He couldn't quite do that here – but with help from two Keyblades and indentations between each floor of the building, he could repeat some of the effects. Jumping, running for a few paces, jumping again, and somehow Vincent was just running, straight up as if gravity affected him even less than Sora.

They reached the top and Sora knew he would be feeling that later, doing things he was pretty sure he shouldn't be able to, even if it was mostly just jumping and flipping upward, grabbing a purchase wherever he could on the way up. His muscles ached and burned but he couldn't stop because now he was running to the edge again and jumping with Vincent, trusting that the man knew his own abilities and would keep up well enough.

He hit the next roof and went into a roll to keep his speed, coming up straight back into a run, heading at an angle to reach a lower roof instead of an even higher one. He swore he could hear something rumbling as he was in midair and he crashed into the next roof as it seemed to jump. Then he really had to run, sending on last desperate look toward the man in the red cloak before putting every last bit of speed on. Something hot was beneath them, like a billowing fire spell – a bomb, a lot of bombs, he didn't know which, all going off and suddenly he wasn't jumping roof to roof but jumping onto flying pieces of wreckage, onto falling buildings, onto anything as he kept a Potion in one hand and a Keyblade in the other – one to heal him in sudden desperate bouts of fire, the other to either give him leverage or defend him from flying pieces of red-hot metal.

Something hot and red hit from behind and he screamed even as he reached desperately for the Potion, half pouring it and half drinking it as his skin tried to burn away. But even that moment where he had fallen to what had once been the side of the building was too long. Everything under him was burning, melting and he leapt forward, only to see fire, everywhere. Desperately, he called Blizzaga a he tried to jump through it – but metal hit his legs and he fell through a wall of a building, into red and orange death.

He tried Reflect, or Blizzaga, or anything, but metal fell onto him as well as around him and he had the sudden knowledge he was about to die – when a hand pulled him up and dropped a Potion into his mouth – not that it mattered much in the heat, but it gave him a few extra seconds as Vincent growled, "Change! That Silver Form!"

He shook his head, gasping, "They aren't here!" but reached anyway, reached for power, any power and had a sinking feeling as he realized none of them could save him – nothing that he wanted. But something else leapt toward him eagerly, and he wanted to jerk back, but it was too hot, and he was burning – and darkness took him.

The one next to him was not His, but he was not enemy and there was a part of Sora that recognized debts, and the man did not looked horrified, simply resigned as fire came to eat them, was eating them – and Sora was silent, yellow eyes studying crimson before suddenly his black claws threw the red man over his back and leapt – metal, hot or not, ripped easily beneath him and he tore through the buildings, up other red hot ones.

It burned at him, and he wanted to kill it, but fire could not be killed. He wanted something to rend to tear, but the only way to beat this was something he could do as easily – he could run, ignoring the heat, ignoring the metal that came toward them. He was a blur of motion, and his feet left the ground for longer moments than should be possible – it was nearly flying, what he did, but it was fast, and if that was the way to destroy his enemy, then he would be fast.

Shots echoed overhead – there was a weapon near him and he ran faster, it taking moments to realize the one he owed debt to was to blame, protecting him. Perhaps he was something that belonged to him after all. Only his others protected him so well – only they were allowed to. Something cool and green poured into him when he did once fall, his speed still taking them forward, and onto ground that felt strange beneath his claws, but not red, not hurting him and he turned and fixed yellow eyes on the red man, the urge to find something to tear and rend too great to ignore now.

Was he His? It was what made him hesitate, claws ready, but instincts confused. A debt was owed and repaid – if he wasn't His, then he would now be destroyed. Crimsons eyes stared at him, and when the voice spoke, it was not His, not something that tugged at a part of him sheltered in light beneath the dark. If it was not His, it was something to be destroyed – especially when it had a faint hint of darkness beneath its skin.

He leapt, and the man's eyes widened, a gun came forward, and he dodged midair, curling around the man's form before he could blink, claws wanting to rip and tear. He did, ripping into skin amidst struggles he ignored, red liquid pouring out where he expected darkness. Shots fired and he dodged with that eerie silence before tackling the man again, determined to destroy. Suddenly another shot fired and he was jerked off, something scratching him, pushing him and his head snapped to the side to see a new enemy, a longer gun in his hand. Enemies were everywhere and he could have purred at the battle that was to follow – until something His screamed, "Sora! Stop!"

That made him pause for a moment, but the enemy was there still and he leapt again – until something gold hit him. He stopped, keening at the sudden betrayal and staring at the red girl that was His – until she hesitated, and pulled him close.

Safe – this was safety, being with his and Sora relaxed, darkness seeping away to let the light part unfurl. The first thing when his mind was full of truth and not just what was his and what was not, was Roxas yelling, _'We could have killed them!'_

He shuddered against Kairi, closing blue eyes and burying his head in her neck. She was hugging him close and he returned the favor, murmuring, "I _hate_ Anti Form."

"Me too. Glad we were already looking for you. Doesn't... Vincent is a friend, you've never... I mean, you attacked the soldiers on Atlantis but never a friend before." He could hear the quiet worry in her voice and hugged her tighter.

"He smelled a bit like darkness to me. And the only one I allow that on like that is... Well, us. Riku and me, not you. You never smell like darkness." He didn't really want to let go, because letting go meant facing Vincent and Irvine and he really didn't want to do that.

Except he had to because Kairi was pushing him away as she said, "I'm glad," and he forced his eyes toward the pair of men, Irvine still looking as if he was ready to shoot – and Vincent despite recently healed wounds and cloak and most of what clothes hadn't been burned ripped with claw marks, looked no different, just the tiniest bit quizzical. If anything, he looked a little more open than he usually did.

Irvine eyed him with a wary look as he asked, "What the fuck was that, kid?"

"Everyone has darkness. Mine just gets to come out and play a bit differently," he said, trying for weak humor to match the shaky smile on his face. To his surprise, Irvine actually smiled back, eyes sliding back over to Vincent in some strange shared joke.

"Everyone has problems," Vincent said smoothly, and just like that they were moving away and Sora glanced back, eyes widening to see the hazy sky, smoke and fire filling the space where North River and the surrounding streets had been. He could feel the memory of burns - and a few remaining ones, most light, as well as a mark on his side where a bullet would have been. It still throbbed, a distant reminder of Anti Form, but he didn't heal it, not yet.

Molten gold and yellow and orange lived where the streets had been, the rain and wind not even fazing them. The ground seemed to boil as he watched and he remembered falling, burning up under red hot metal, sure that he was about to die. Somehow, the bag around his shoulders had survived, if singed. Maybe it, like so much else had been fire proof enough to survive. His clothes had handled it well enough, but they had some damage themselves – he would need to do a lot of cleaning and sewing before wearing them again.

A hand rested on his shoulder and he was surprised to look to his side and see Vincent, rain having flattened his hair down until it stuck to his back and chest. "Come. It's done now."

Reluctantly, he turned away, but before Vincent could walk away he said, "Thank you, for saving me."

There was a glitter that could have been amusement in his eyes. "Neither of us was going to get out alive by ourselves. Self preservation prompted me to help you."

"Right," Sora said, unsure if the man simply didn't know how to say "You're Welcome" or if he felt a need to explain away heroic actions. "Still... the reason doesn't matter. You still saved my life."

Vincent blinked, then inclined his head and walked away. Sora was betting on the side of no longer remembering how to say "You're Welcome".

* * *

Half of the bottles he had turned out to be antidotes that would work, another quarter various other kinds of antidotes to other sicknesses. Rinoa thanked him profusely, giving him both a hug and a kiss on both cheeks that made him blush. Since then she had been treating him much as she did the children, thankfully with a bit more maturity. He had been anxious to give the antidote to Riku – but he didn't wake up immediately and it had been Rinoa to take him to the side.

"The antidote means he's no longer having to fight the poison, but he still will need rest to recover. All three of you heal wonderfully. He'll wake up before you know it, okay?" She smiled a sad, wistful smile that he didn't understand but he nodded, grateful for the explanation. He didn't expect her to clear her throat and continue, "Irvine... told me some of what happened. Not all, because Vincent's not the most talkative person in the world. Do you... need any help?"

His mind flashed back to that argument he had heard that first time out of his room in this house. He had to wonder if Irvine was still so adamant about them staying now. He shook his head, hearing Roxas sigh in his mind. "I'm fine. It doesn't happen often. I needed more power and Anti Form was the only part of me that had it."

"And for that power comes a price?" Her smile was still sad, but resigned and understanding. "As long as you're both alive, the price is worth it."

He resisted the urge to point out that he had actually tried to kill Vincent, Roxas soothing it away this time. _'Don't – she knows, Irvine must have told her. Don't think about it – it wasn't your fault. He would be dead if you hadn't used Anti Form, accidentally or not. Everyone's alive – be happy.'_

He wanted to – but he couldn't yet. So he smiled at Rinoa and head downstairs, leaning against a doorway to watch the children. It was easier to remember to be happy in the face of such unrestrained joy. Quistis was looking sulky as she tried to order the four boys and Marlene about and the only one who even tried to pay attention was Kiros, but even he was quickly pulled into a scuffle as Zell and Denzel's friendly scuffle moved to include him and Marlene giggled with Zidane as the child waved his hands in some extravagant story.

It was Zidane who saw him first and the bright eyes widened before narrowing with a certain gleam that Sora was all too familiar with. "The enemy troops! Get him!"

In an instant, five children dove for him. He could have easily side stepped, but instead stepped inside to meet their dive, pretending to stagger. "Oh no! I'm under attack!"

With a theatrical groan he let himself fall, closing his eyes. "I've been killed! Tell the general I tried! There were just too many!"

"Your message will never make it back! We will carve you up and eat you up!" Zidane's screech was met with contemplative silence and Sora let one eye open to a slit, watching as Marlene's face screwed up with disgust and Kiros stared at Zidane with a raised eyebrow.

"We're not cannibals! We treat the enemy dead with honor!" Quistis announced, as regal as a queen and Sora grinned and lay there to let them argue about the proper way to deal with an enemy corpse. Marlene was nestled by his side, Zell on his other with Denzel slipping off his chest and he opened his eyes to gaze at them as they watched their friends argue. He remembered only vaguely being so small and innocent – everything had been a game then.

He missed it, in a way. But he had found new games as he grew older. And as long as Kairi and Riku were alongside him, he would be happy.

* * *

Curled up on Riku's bed, it was easy to feel when a hand reached up and brushed his hair. This time, it wasn't Kairi's, or Rinoa's, or even Vincent who had done it once when he had been nearly fully asleep. They all thought he was asleep when they did it. This hand though, was familiar in ways none of the adults were and he blinked sleepy blue eyes up into aquamarine ones, a smile quirking on lips that had been too unmoving for too long.

He must have stared too long because Riku's brow furrowed in concern, and his mouth opened to ask a question. Sora didn't give him a chance, stretching out and pulling his head up even with Riku's in a second. His lips met Riku's clumsily for a moment as they both shifted, scrambling for better positions until they lay facing each other and Sora had an arm around Riku's back and up into his hair, pulling him closer.

After a long kiss that left him wanting more, Riku was able to get in his question. "How long?"

"Few days. Nearly a week," he muttered and moved in for another kiss which Riku seemed pleased enough to get.

They broke apart when Riku pushed him back and looked thoughtful. "I think I'm hungry."

"You have been sleeping most of the time," Sora said agreeably and was moving – but a hand snaked out and dragged him back. He was surprised to see the mischief in Riku's eyes. He was still weak, he had to be recovering – but he didn't protest when Riku drew him back down.

"Food can wait. It wasn't the hunger I was talking about," Riku purred and Sora laughed, kissed him deeply – and then ducked out of his embrace much to Riku's obvious disappointment by the groan he gave.

Sora was already getting new clothes out for Riku. "If I can wait, so can you. C'mon, lean on me and I'll help you into the shower. For _cleaning_."

He had to look away from Riku's face as the boy smirked at him, because he was so happy to see him awake that every change of expression made Sora want to kiss him. So long his expression had remained unchanged or in fever dreams, screwed up in fear that Sora trembled in relief. Riku was better – he was going to be fine.

That was all he needed to be happy.

* * *

End Chapter 23.

Apologies for the long wait everyone, however RL and my muse conspired against me.


	24. Chapter 24

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.

Author's Note: My computer slipped from my bed and the computer was dropped, therefore losing two-thirds of chapter 24. So if this new and rewritten Chapter 24 sucks… can we pretend the other one would have been better? . The dropping is also why it took so long because... it's really difficult to not be frustrated re-writing something.

Beta: Thanks to chiiaroscuro for being my beta, especially considering how long I took!

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Chapter Twenty-Four

It was, despite or perhaps because of the magic that crawled around her skin, tempting to just sit outside and watch the landscape. Rinoa and Irvine had decided to take all of the children they were caring for – and privately, Kairi could admit that the adults probably included them – outside of the city for a day. Zell and Zidane, by far the two most energetic boys, were busy chasing each other everywhere, Zidane constantly "cheating" (as said by Zell) by climbing the trees.

Of course, she was personally amused that she could make similar comparisons to a cackling Sora running from an annoyed Riku, whose hair was most definitely wet from a low-grade Watera spell. As well as his clothes. It was warm out, as she would have pointed out if she thought it would make a difference to Riku, who had been looking for an excuse to get up and move. He had been edgy for nearly an hour, and she had been trying to think up ways to give him something to do that didn't sound like work, and had been moving into pranking territory herself when Sora had calmly hit Riku with the spell, and then taken off in a sprint when Riku had snarled and turned around.

She gave it a few minutes until they thought they were safely out of the eyes of the children and their chaperones and Sora let Riku catch him. Following would get her an eyeful she had seen too many times. She shook her head ruefully, especially at Naminé's amused giggle, and turned back to look at the adults. She found Irvine standing there. "Can I sit down?"

Irvine was nice. Not the Sora type of nice, or Rinoa's type of nice. Irvine could make lewd jokes to any female he saw and now mean anything by it – though after the first time of facing Sora and Riku's combined rage, he had stopped his harmless flirting with her – and he could act selfish, but he was a good man, and he deeply cared for his friends and the children they looked after. Especially Vincent, though Kairi couldn't figure that one out. There had been some amused looks by Riku between the two, and she had to wonder what her observant friend was seeing that she didn't.

"It's free grass. Unless your government used to make you pay for this, too," she said with a quirk of her lips. She knew that Irvine's views of the old government were biased. Those with little magic in their blood had usually been of the type to forswear the products that both the government and many major businesses urged people to use. Purists, of the sort that said no magic but what they were born with should be in them. Rinoa had admitted this to her, so she took many of the bitter complaints the three of them – Vincent never said much of anything – stated about the old ways with a grain of salt. Though it had produced Sephiroth – and he hadn't been the only problem child, and until he had come back insane, not even one of the worst.

"Nah, this grass didn't have enough magic in it for them. This was a free space, bought by people who didn't like how things were. It's spread in the past couple of years, since even some of the plants too drenched in artificial magics were destroyed. Got a nice beach a few miles that way. We were just too lazy to go there today." He was, to all intents and purposes, just chatting, but there was something serious about the way he sat, not laying out like he usually did. However, she forgot about that when he mentioned a beach.

"There's a beach? Really? With the oceans and sand and everything?" Kairi's eyes were lit up brightly and she almost didn't understand the confused look she was given as she leaned forward and added, "We're from an island you know."

The light of understanding dawned in Irvine's eyes and his mouth went from the familiar careless grin to something more sympathetic. "Aw, kid, I'm sorry. If we'd known, we would have gone out and showed you. Could have showed all us mainlanders how the whole swimming thing is done. And you would have looked cute in a swimsuit."

Funny how days ago that comment would have been something more like "hot in a bikini" or even worse and coupled with a grin but now he was looking at her like she was a precious little sister. Well, not that honestly he hadn't been before, but it was fairly amusing to see what Riku and Sora had done so obviously. She didn't quite keep this amusement out of her voice. "Riku and Sora would have shown you the most. They're good at making points."

There was a brief flicker of the beginnings of a glare before Irvine wryly smiled, shrugging in acceptance of the barb, before jumping on this new topic. "Actually, I kind of wanted to talk to you about that. Riku and Sora. Mostly Sora. He's dark, Kairi."

She couldn't say this wasn't expected, after Anti Form. Yet she still stiffened up, finding herself offended for Sora and the fact Irvine was trying to convince her. Unaware of her thoughts, Irvine continued, "You seem like a logical girl, and really, I'm just looking out for you. But you saw what happened with Vincent and him, he turned on 'im, didn't even stop no matter how much I shot at him or anything! He's dangerous! He was wrapped in darkness, like a damn Heartless himself!"

"Sora is not a Heartless!" She found herself getting to her feet, her face flushed with anger. "He doesn't use Anti Form on purpose! And he only attacks things in that Form that he perceives as a danger to him, us, or that smell like darkness!"

Furious, she couldn't help but whip around and point at Vincent, who was watching with a slightly curious expression on his face but otherwise seemed unaffected. "Which he does! He feels dark! Not like a Heartless, but he is a bit of the darkness and we don't accuse him of _anything_. Sora doesn't even usually feel a bit like the dark! _Riku_ is darker than Sora. It was an accident, and it won't happen again."

"An accident that's happened before. You didn't look surprised about Anti Form, just that he had changed in to it. How does it happen, Kairi? Does he just lust for power or is his rage so great it turns him into _that_?" Irvine was standing now too, and they were inches apart, yelling into each other's faces.

"I have said and still believe he was attempting something else that would give him the power to get us out of there. It did not work the way he hoped," Vincent stated, not even an opinion on who was right, but facts offered out there. And behind Irvine, Kairi could see her boys making there way out of the woods. Probably they had heard the yelling, and she felt regretful for having disturbed them.

But Irvine couldn't see them yet and she didn't feel like letting him know they were coming. "Anti Form is an accident. A side effect of the powers granted to him by the clothes he wears. It's a risk trying to gain the powers of it, but with Final Form a low one. It was only because the situation was so desperate that he ended up that way. _And he saved Vincent's life_. Or is that unimportant?" Kairi demanded, resisting the urge to stomp her foot right down onto his in a childish fit of temper. Nothing made her so angry as someone acting this way against her friends.

"Saved and then tried to kill!" Irvine's shout would have continued, and the man was even opening his mouth to say more, when a Keyblade swiped his legs out from under him and he found himself looking into unamused aqua eyes.

"Look, you seem like a nice guy, and I might get a bit up in arms if someone attacked Sora looking like that. But maybe before making baseless accusations you should actually ask questions. Kairi just explained what it was. Did you hear a thing she said?" Riku was strangely calm as he stopped Irvine from reaching for his gun by placing the tip of Slender Thorn at his throat. Riku being that calm worried her and she exchanged puzzled looks with Sora. Calm in voice, but his actions didn't match his words at all, and she didn't like the spark of rage in Riku's eyes matched with Slender Thorn.

He wouldn't do anything bad, but Sora and Riku were both used to explaining themselves in actions more than words, and the way Riku looked like he wanted to explain was violent and messy. Sora grimaced and said, "Riku. Maybe you should let him up first. I don't think anyone's going to be honest with a sword at their throat."

For a moment, Kairi wondered if Riku was even listening, the fury in his eyes an echo of what had been in hers just a minute ago, but so much more dangerous. Then her friend shrugged carelessly, and the Keyblade disappeared. "Fine. But if he tries to tell _us_ what Sora is again, I'm going to hit him."

"And I will shoot you," Vincent said, voice calm. "I do not believe you will find it pleasant."

"Then maybe you should get busy keeping his mouth occupied," Riku snapped and there was a pause as everyone digested the implication. Vincent didn't take his eyes off of Riku, but Kairi swore there was some amusement there.

"As he was attempting to keep you occupied?" Vincent said, with a pointed look at Sora, who flushed, but shrugged sheepishly. Despite Irvine's suspicious gaze on Sora, Kairi couldn't help but feel her lips quirk up. If the implication was true – and Vincent and Irvine weren't precisely denying it – then perhaps that was what had Riku looking amused the past few days whenever he looked between them. She glanced at Sora, and when she caught his eyes, tilted her head toward Vincent and Irvine. Sora vigorously shook his head.

She was glad she wasn't the last to know, but Riku and Vincent were just staring at each other now and slowly, Kairi took a few steps back and motioned for Sora to follow. He did, and se kept her voice low. "Irvine said there's a beach that way. It's a few miles, but... Well, it might be nice to explore this world."

It was unsaid that maybe it would be better to explore it without their new friends for a day or so. Sora met her eyes and grinned. "Maybe we can catch some of those big birds we keep seeing, those chocobos. The others said they're rideable."

"Oh! Remember that birthday present I got from Cloud? We could use that to make a few trust us!" She had seen those birds from afar, and they were beautiful. Mostly yellow, but she had seen the other colors that had been mixed in. Blues and greens, reds and purples, and a single majestic black that had looked over the flock so carefully. The others had told them that there were white ones as well, and most rare of all were the golds.

"You have it with you?" Sora asked, surprised. She grinned, pleased at herself now for keeping a bit of it in her pack, which was settled against a tree. Actually, her pack had a few interesting and possibly useful things that she tried to take with her as often as possible incase they would be needed.

At her nod, Sora's eyes lit up. "Let's catch some chocobos!"

----------

Despite Sora's confident words, it was her and Riku who did the best, and the placid green they caught for Sora was the best they could do. Of course, despite the tension between them, Irvine wasn't going to let them go barebacked, and somehow they found themselves with saddles and reins after they announced their intentions to ride their newly caught chocobos. Rinoa also handed them greens so they wouldn't need to use up all of Cloud's present, something Kairi was grateful for.

However it had not occurred to them that even with saddles and reins, that Kairi was the only one with any riding experience, and that was a horse. It did help her keep her seat, but the movement was much different than a horse. Her yellow had been curious about them, but the hardest to catch, dodging out of their grip after only a moment, as if amused. Even now, he made sudden shifts of his wings attempting to dislodge her, but he didn't seem to truly want her off – more like he was amusing himself.

Oddly, Riku had caught the single black. She had thought it would refuse to leave the flock – but Riku had been determined, and it had surprisingly given little fuss. She had turned out to be patient, and faintly amused. Kairi had a suspicion she had been raised by people herself – maybe most of the chocobos this close to the city were. Certainly they didn't seem afraid of them.

By the time they reached the beach, she was hiding a grin at Sora's groan as he dismounted. The green wandered over to peck at the ground, but seemed undisturbed by her former rider's complaints, or on getting back to the flock. Kairi wasn't so sure hers wouldn't just run off for his amusement, and she winced herself as she dismounted, but attached the reins to the branch of a tree near where Sora's green shuffled around.

"Why do people learn how to ride?" Riku groaned, leaning against the black chocobo, who stood solidly beside him, blinking blue eyes slowly as if bemused as to why the strange creature was suddenly unable to walk on his own.

"Because it's faster than walking?" Kairi suggested, feeding her yellow some greens.

Sora raised his hand and cleared his throat. "Um, it's not faster than gliding."

She joined Riku in staring at him silently before slowly asking, "Then why did you get on her?"

"Seemed like fun," Sora muttered, looking away. Kairi exchanged a glance with Riku before shrugging and patted the yellow chocobo one more time before looking toward the ocean.

A thought occurred to her as she stared at the beach. "We probably should have gone back to get our swimsuits first."

"Why? We've been living on a ship together for months. We'll just strip to our underwear! It's not that much different, right?" Sora, in suspiciously groan free movements – she had a suspicion there had been a hurried potion or Cure when her back was turned – was already stripping down to his boxers and Riku was staring, first at his boyfriend, and then back at her.

"He has a point," she ventured, sliding out of her shorts. Dark red and silver material joined the pile. She folded hers, placing them in the bag they had brought to the picnic for their things - now it would hold their clothes. Sora surprisingly folded his as well. She supposed she wouldn't be surprised by now – he had learned a lot on his adventures. Riku was the one she had to glare at until he smoothed out his clothes from their crumbled state and placed them fairly neatly alongside theirs.

Sora's following snickers had Riku launching himself across the ground and Sora yelped and took off for the ocean. Kairi grinned as she watched Sora barely keep out of Riku's reach. Neither of them was even close to running full out, or trying very hard. Otherwise she imagined Sora would have cheated by now using his ability to glide. Not that he considered it cheating, but she certainly did, and she bet Riku did as well.

It had been too on since she had been near the ocean. She swallowed the initial reaction, tears pricking at the back of her eyes. This wasn't home, she shouldn't feel such joy at the scent of the sea in her nostrils or the feel of the sand beneath her toes. Yet, that didn't stop her from beginning to cry in earnest. There was joy and grief mixed in one, because her mind knew this wasn't home, knew she might never see her home and her family again, but her heart was singing that this was it.

There was no paopu tree on the shore. No childhood playhouse – but some part of her wished they could just stay here, by this ocean so far from home. It would be easier than seeing her boys hurt all the time, wondering if this time they wouldn't be so lucky or so determined. She didn't want them to die – but she afraid before they could get Destiny Islands back and save the universe, that one of them would be gone.

"Kairi? Are you all right?" Riku's soft voice came from behind her and she whirled around, absently brushing at tears. Both boys were there, Riku looking concerned, both looking confused, and she couldn't manage to speak for a moment.

Apparently she didn't even need to. Sora stepped forward and engulfed her in his arms. "Little close to the islands. I feel it too."

She smiled, pressed against his chest, and wrapped her arms around his back, taking comfort that Sora at least understood. There was a faint noise of understanding from Riku and then another set of arms was around them both. "I thought you two would be happy about this. A few minutes ago, you seemed like you were looking forward to it Kairi."

"I was. I am! It just hit me hard, you know? It's cooler here, but... it smells like home. It _feels_ like home, Riku. I'll be all right in a minute. Just... Can you two hold me until then?" She didn't add that it really only felt more like home, being in their arms. But being near them would always be home, even more than the islands, much as it was a punch in the gut to even think it.

"Of course we can," Riku scoffed indignantly, and his tone made her laugh just a bit. As if he gave hugs all the time, despite being the boy that avoided all mushy stuff.

With her chin tucked beneath Sora's and Riku's hair tickling her chin, she looked out at the ocean and wondered why Sephiroth had seemed to hate this world enough that he would try to destroy it – or at least the people in it. There were already so many things that could take away a world, why do it himself?

----------

Sitting on a couch in Rinoa's shared house days later, Kairi was beginning to wonder if they would ever find the way to open new paths – or to lock the world. Preferably both, was her hope. It would keep the Heartless from the world's heart to lock it, even if it wouldn't keep tem away from the world. The world they stood on had suffered enough as it was. Even now, a large creature had been attacking people who stepped outside the city.

Irvine was off somewhere, which was probably why Sora looked so comfortable flopped into a chair and asking Vincent question after question in a strangely quiet voice. And Vincent was actually answering. She couldn't hear what they were saying – but that was partly because Rinoa was showing her photo albums of when they all were younger – except for Vincent, Kairi wasn't sure why he wasn't in there, and she didn't ask. It had been made quite clear by Irvine that Vincent's past was no one's concern but his.

She was absently passing the albums to Sora and taking another when she was done with one. The most recent ones sowed Cloud still young, but more recognizable. He was maybe thirteen, and could often be seen in the background or the edge of Sephiroth's pictures – but never wit him, not at first. It was only when a new boy with spiky black hair and blue eyes joined them that Cloud was pulled into the forefront.

She was just beginning to look at the next album, now devoid of all three boys and showing Irvine, Rinoa herself, and a girl called Ashe most of the time as well as various family and friends. Sora's sudden incredulous "ZACK?" had her raising her head to stare at him. "She did say his name was Zack... Is there something wrong, Sora?"

Her friend didn't answer at first, gaping at the photos in front of him. When he did say something, she nearly winced at the loud yell. "RIKU."

Baffled, she glanced at Rinoa, who was looking toward her for answers. In equal confusion, they stared at each other as Riku came clattering in from outside at a run, Slender Thorn in his hand. "What is it?"

"It's Zack!" Sora exclaimed insistently, and Kairi was still baffled as Riku looked at the picture – and his eyes grew large.

"I remember him," Riku said softly, staring at the picture with as much shock as Sora. His quiet shock unnerved her as much as Sora's louder exclamations had. "He used to baby-sit us. He left... a little bit after you turned five, right? I remember him better from pictures at this point. That's... That's the Zack they've been talking about?"

"Yes," Vincent confirmed, his voice showing only mild curiosity. "Did he come from your world?"

Riku and Sora exchanged wordless glances and Kairi braced herself for a revelation that would explain their shock – and the small smile on Sora's face. Sora tilted his head back at Vincent and explained, "He was my cousin."

There was silence for a few moments, and Kairi just breathed, letting her thoughts settle. Riku hadn't been the first to think up how to get off their world. She had to wonder how Zack had done it. It had been before she came – but not before Xehanort's experiments had begun. And there had always been Heartless... perhaps Zack had found gummi pieces dropped by worlds long gone. Perhaps a gummi ship had crashed before they were even born and he fixed it up. There were other ways – but most of those involved dark powers and somehow the bright exuberant boy Rinoa had described didn't seem the type. She had even had a sense Rinoa herself had once crushed on the boy.

She looked over at Rinoa to see how she was taking it. The older woman's shock was fading into a thoughtful frown. Surprisingly, considering the way Sora was beginning to fidget, Rinoa broke the silence first. "It makes sense. You look similar. And Zack did mention family back where he had come from. He said he did well with some of the kids back then because he used to babysit. You're sure... No, of course you are. Have you ever heard from him since then?"

"I never heard from him after he left. He kinda just said goodbye and then... Nothing. I thought he was still on our world all this time... I bet he never went back." Sora's voice was low and sad, and Kairi's throat closed up in sympathy.

"He probably couldn't. Sephiroth and Cloud left together, with Zack – you know where they ended up, Sora. And when." Riku's expression was grim, but his tone was compassionate. "They couldn't have been there too long before Radiant Garden became Hollow Bastion. It was only a few months later after he left that Kairi came to our world."

Kairi found herself nodding along with Sora at Riku's logic. They couldn't have been there that long considering how much of that time Zack had spent on this world. She knew it had been around twelve years since darkness descended on Radiant Garden – she had no idea how long it had taken for the last of it's defenders to be driven out of the world. She knew Cloud and Aerith had become friends in that time... How long had they spent in that world of darkness, refusing to give up before someone – probably Cid – had pushed some of them onto a gummi ship and launched them out of there. Where had Zack, Cloud, and Sephiroth been then?

Somewhere between the three boys leaving this world and Sora meeting Cloud, Sephiroth had gone insane. And the utter lack of Zack mentioned by either Cloud or Sephiroth made a chilling suspicion of what that was enter her mind. Glancing at Sora, bittersweet joy at finding his cousin had traveled to this world before him evident on his face, she made the decision to say nothing.

_'You don't know if that's it anyway. They were all so young... Cloud was only the age Sora was when he was chosen as Keyblade Master when Radiant Garden sunk into darkness. Anything could have happened,'_ Naminé whispered sadly.

She had to agree with her Nobody – she couldn't suggest something like that without any proof. Especially not right now, as Sora's voice was asking exuberant questions of a laughing Rinoa about his cousin. Her eyes drifted to Riku, and found him watching Sora with a similar melancholy as her own echoing in his expression. Is eyes met hers and they managed to smile at each other. Even if Zack might never be found, it didn't really mean he had to be dead. They could pretend, for Sora's sake, that the thought had never entered their minds.

----------

"That is not a Heartless," Sora said accusingly as Irvine pointed out a creature that had been bothering the small population of the city whenever they walked outside of the ruins. "That is a dragon!"

Kairi had to agree. It was large, had two wings, four legs, and looked scaly. "He has a point."

"Hey, you three said you needed new leads. This is a lead. Take it or leave it." Irvine smirked at them and she twitched, wondering if it was really a bad thing to just send a little Light Flare at him. She was pretty sure there were rules about that outside of spars. Aerith would scold her so badly if she knew she was even thinking of it. But it was so tempting sometimes, much as she liked the man, to wipe that smug expression right off of his face,

"That's amazing," Riku said in awe. Kairi blinked and stared at him a long moment until he noticed all of them staring and he jerked, flushing a little. "Well, look at her. She's beautiful."

Mutely, she stared at the golden dragon sunning itself in front of a cave, noting the large teeth as it yawned, and then looked back at Riku. Somehow, she wasn't surprised to hear Sora say wistfully, "It's a pity she's been attacking people. She looks so content. And happy."

"Maybe she had good reason? She would go after the chocobos if it was just food. And all of them are still around. Kali would have caused a fuss if they were even attacked. She can be fierce when she needs to be," Riku explained, and Kairi was briefly distracted as she puzzled over to whom he was referring to.

"You named her Kali? Does she answer to it?" Sora asked, and Kairi wondered if she was the only one still looking at the dragon. Irvine, Barret, and Vincent were both paying more attention to Riku and Rinoa was tying up the chocobos they had ridden there. She had caught the same yellow as before – though caught was the wrong word to use. When she had tried to grab a solid looking purple, her yellow had bullied the purple out of the way, preening under her glare. He hadn't let her catch any others, but had still danced around her as she tried to saddle him. And Riku's of course, had once again ridden the black.

She was pretty sure that was what he was referring to as Kali. In the week since they had first ridden them, Riku had gone out to the flock at least once a day and had evidently decided the name the black chocobo. She had never much thought Riku to be an animal person – but apparently chocobos and now dragons were an exception.

The dragon was shifting as she stared and she caught a glimpse of something white behind it. Then, when the dragon flattened a little more she caught a glimpse _many_ white things and nearly choked as she asked, "Irvine, did the people se was bothering happen to be carrying anything?"

"They had a couple of giant white rocks. Somehow I don't think that would matter to a dragon. She was probably just hungry. Or maybe she just doesn't like humans. Does it matter? She's a danger to everyone," Irvine grumbled.

Barret had caught the direction of her stare however and asked, "Those stones egg shaped?"

"I guess, but what does that... Shit." Irvine had caught their direction. "Those are eggs."

"Yes," Kairi agreed, eyeing the dragon's long tail. It ended on a spade shape, and she wondered how much that would hurt to be thrown by. It was probably the least damaging thing on the dragon and could still kill her in an instant.

"Dragon eggs are considered a delicacy by some," Vincent offered quietly.

"They're delicious!" Rinoa agreed as she walked up. "I had one once and it was the best thing I had ever tasted! Hard to get, apparently three people had died just trying to get one. Dragons don't have eggs often and they can take years to mature. Fortunately they also have a short memory so if you can keep the egg for a day or two, they'll usually forget that it was you personally that stole their eggs. They uh, do tend to know how many eggs they should have though."

There was a pause before more quietly Rinoa asked, "That's a female with eggs, isn't it?"

"Yup," Irvine agreed. "And by the constant attacks, I think someone took some of her eggs. She just doesn't know who."

"Poor thing," Sora murmured. "Would it still be alive?"

"It would depend on if they have eaten it yet," Vincent informed them, and Kairi couldn't help feeling a little sympathetic to the dragon herself. It must be awful to have her children stolen away and not even remember whom.

"If someone in the city has it, we'll find out," Irvine said grimly. "We don't have enough people left on this world to spare a few because someone had the urge to have dragon omelet. If we give her the egg back, even if it's dead, at least she'll have the right number again. She'll attack tonight when it gets dark and she's less lethargic. If we can't get the egg back by then... Barret, Vincent, keep watch on her." Irvine whirled, striding back to the chocobos, his normally cheerful demeanor gone.

Kairi moved to follow with Riku and Sora, and heard Rinoa quietly murmur to Irvine, "We'll have to kill the eggs anyway. We can't risk the dragon population exploding. Who knows how long she's been here."

She froze at the callous off handed way Rinoa was planning to murder the dragon's children. Her expression must have showed because she felt Riku's hand land on her shoulder. "You and Sora stay here. I'll help them find the egg."

It was left unsaid that he would make sure they didn't kill it if it wasn't already dead. Her lips thinned into a tight frown, and she gave a jerky nod. Riku strode off after Rinoa and Irvine and she felt Sora come to stand beside her, as tense as she was. Despite her earlier fear of the dragon, she couldn't help a low protest of, "The dragon wasn't attacking until they stole her children."

"I know," Sora muttered. "It isn't fair. It takes years for them to hatch, and Vincent told me there are barely a dozen dragons worldwide. There were thousands when he was a child. She only wants to protect her babies."

It didn't make sense to Kairi – the few things mentioned by Rinoa about dragons hadn't been the stories she had heard on some planets. In fact, she had heard very little about them eating people. Attacking, yes, but eating? It seemed odd, but now she couldn't think of a single story of them eating people.

_'Perhaps they don't,'_ A sluggish voice whispered in her mind – and it wasn't Naminé. Nervously she looked around, but there was nothing, and after a few minutes Kairi shook her head at Sora's worried glanced and they joined the two men at dragon watching.

----------

Chocobos couldn't fly, but Kairi was wondering if Kali wasn't willing to try as she ran toward them, Riku on her back, something large and oval shaped in a bag tied to Riku's back. Kairi was thinking Sora had been wrong that anything would be faster than a chocobo – it seemed she had only blinked when Kali was twisting to a stop, moving with Riku to spin him in a controlled movement out of the saddle as he landed, crouched in front of them. For a moment, she could only wonder faintly how Riku had learned to ride so much better in only a week. Chocobo were easier than horses, but it was still something strange.

"We need to get this back to the mother before she wakes up," Riku said, breathing a little heavily – though not nearly as heavily as Kali, who appeared to have attempted the two hour journey in around five minutes. The bird was nearly shaking from her exertion – and it was no wonder. The sun was already going down. The mostly nocturnal dragon would be waking up soon, counting her eggs and remembering that one of them was gone.

Sora murmured, "Too late."

She spun around to stare as the dragon, now awake and standing over her eggs, began to hiss and nudge at the eggs in increasing frustration. Sora and Riku were muttering about sneaking down there after the dragon left, of making sure Vincent and Barrett didn't shoot her, putting the egg back and just hoping no one else was hurt. It wasn't a good plan. Her eyes flashed in anger as se turned to look at them. It would be less dangerous just to walk down there with the egg and trust the dragon wouldn't attack them if they were holding the egg.

Her mouth opened to snap at them for the plan that would probably get them or someone else killed, or get the dragon killed – when it occurred to her that the egg was right there. Riku had put it down by his feet. It shimmered oddly, silver instead of the white of the ones she had seen, but she didn't stop to think of the differences. A strange urge was in her mind, and she followed it, scooping up the egg and turning away as the boys stared a moment in shock. The mother was already looking like she was getting ready to fly. There wasn't any time to explain.

She ran. Sora yelled after, "Kairi! Stop! She'll kill you!"

For some reason, Kairi doubted that. She had nothing but a firm feeling in her heart that the dragon wouldn't touch her at all. The boys would catch up in a moment – but the dragon had already spotted her and with a low, sad cry the golden creature launched herself forward. Kairi stopped just as Sora caught up – she had known he would cat up within seconds, but it had been long enough to get the dragon's attention.

A few wing flaps and the dragon was gliding toward them. Sora's voice in her ear urged, "Give me the egg Kairi. Maybe if we just put it down now, we'll get away fine."

She couldn't put it down. A part of her wanted to. But another part of her knew this was right – the same part that could recognize Belle or Jasmine or Alice even if she couldn't see them. She hugged the egg close to her and waited, the fear that should have been there buried beneath knowledge and certainty. The dragon came in for a landing, and she was faintly surprised Vincent hadn't shot it yet, and that Riku wasn't with her.

"Here," she said, holding out the egg, "We found her for you."

She didn't know why she had decided the egg housed a female, but the golden muzzle came down, sniffing the egg, and then glittering green eyes stared at her. _'Thank you, Princess.'_

The world seemed to stop, and the part of her that had urged her forward into certainty dissipated. She trembled in surprise and slowly put the egg down. "D-Did you just speak to me?"

_'Of course. You are a Princess of Heart. You hear me. Why would I not speak?'_ A low, melodic voice was ringing in her mind, but she couldn't quite get around the fact that it was apparently the dragon, the same dragon dragging a delicate claw into the earth to pick up the egg. _'We remember the Princesses.'_

"I don't understand," Kairi whispered, and Sora beside her grabbed a hold of her arm.

"We should get back to the others, Kairi," he said. "I don't hear anything."

_'Keyblade Master. He is deaf to me – but the other Wielder may not be.'_ The dragon peered up, beyond them, her eyes focusing in on something – someone – else. Kairi didn't have to look to know whose footsteps were approaching.

"I can hear you," Riku said, awed. "What are you?"

_'I am a dragon. What else would I be?' _The dragon tilted her head at him and Kairi resisted the urge to giggle hysterically.

"No one ever mentioned that dragons could speak um... Do you have a name?" Riku sounded nervous, and still awed, and as amazed as she had seen him look when he had gazed at Cloud's well taken care of Buster Sword.

_'I am myself. What need have I of a name? My species doesn't need them. We would know instantly each other, in the past. Not many others can hear us. The Princesses have always been able to hear us. We remember them from always – others can sometimes hear us. Perhaps they are just born different. My eggs were just laid the last time I found a human that could hear me.'_ She sounded happy, almost excited – but tired. Like any mother, really, with a child back. Kairi had a dozen questions suddenly, and no idea which one to ask first.

"Um, guys? What's going on?" Sora was staring between them and Kairi exchanged looks with Riku. She wasn't used to having Sora be on the outside of something that they could do.

Riku stepped forward, and put a hand on Sora's shoulder, some of the awe fading from his face, but Kairi could still see it in his eyes. "She's talking to us. In our minds, I guess. She says most people can't hear her. I guess we're lucky that even two of us can. I'm going to ask her a few things, and see if we can't do something so that people don't attack her or her them. Uh... I think I have Vincent willing to wait, and Barrett seems willing to let us get ourselves killed in his own words, but Irvine and Rinoa probably don't like that I took the eggs. Would you mind guarding?"

She watched anxiously as Sora's expressions stayed blank for a moment before suddenly, he grinned and said, "Fine, but next time one of you tries to say I'm the weirdest of us, I'm calling you a liar and getting King Mickey to title you two Dragontamers."

With a brief hug from her and a longer kiss from Riku, Sora ran back to the trail the other two would approach from. She turned back toward the dragon and Riku's expression became serious. "I don't understand why people hunt you. Someone has to have recorded that you could talk. And they said you have bad memories, but you remember people."

_'Our memory and power is tied to our race. We developed from the magic of this world. We are literally creatures of magic, and the numbers and strength of our race and the magic in the air effects us. The records of our intelligence were conveniently lost when it was discovered that each cell of our bodies could be harvested to use for magical products. As more of us died, we began to forget – I cannot even remember what happened last night. Many have forgotten that humans were ever friendly toward us. I sometimes forget – but a Princess of Heart gives clarity by her very presence. I am sorry that our King is not alive to see one visit us – but you have held our Queen, and she is blessed to have been held by you.'_ Kairi felt a little dizzy. A dragon was talking to her – and showing her such respect, as if she were important. Apparently, to this creature, she was.

"What else do you know of Princesses?" She asked, both eager and afraid to answer.

The dragon was silent for a long time, staring at them both before finally sighing, _'The memories given by the ancestors are dim now. I cannot remember much at all. Perhaps it is only the recent mention of the Princess and two with Keyblades by that man that has me even remembering this much.'_

Alarmed, she stared at Riku who asked sharply, "Man? What man?"

_'The man. He had a no-hearted creature beside him.'_ There was a pause and then, _'He may have stolen our Queen. I cannot remember how long it was.'_

"We found the egg abandoned," Riku murmured. "Just sitting in an alleyway like it was junk, not important at all. It was a set up."

_'I must move my eggs while the night is still young. They cannot stay here. They are too close to hatching to risk. Thank you for your help – and I would ask a favor. If you see the no-heart creatures that stole my egg and the man – '_

"We will make sure they can't do it again," Kairi promised grimly. That seemed to be enough for the dragon, as she flew up, the egg she claimed was her future queen in her clutches. The sky was darkening, but she could still see the glittering gold body as the dragon landed and began to do something with the eggs.

"We should go help Sora distract the others," Riku said after a long silence.

Kairi nodded, but didn't move. "Do you think later, when the other dragons have hatched, that she'll remember more?"

There was a pause and then Riku said reluctantly, "I don't know. Maybe we can come back and see then. Come on."

She moved to follow – but something about the cave seemed off. She couldn't see the other eggs, but the silver one appeared to be glowing. All at once, Radiant Spirit was in her hand and she smiled as to her eyes, it was suddenly sunny, with bright blue sky and faint wisps of white clouds surrounding her. She took a step forward and pointed her Keyblade toward the egg that appeared to be floating in midair. There was the sound of something opening, and she could almost see the paths unfurling before her eyes.

She closed her eyes just a moment, and when she opened them again, the gold dragon was taking the silver egg away, and it was dark once again. Riku was grinning at her faintly and she blushed. "We still haven't locked it."

"We won't need to if we stop them soon," Riku pointed out, and her grip on Radiant Spirit faded as she sent the Keyblade away. She would still rather look around for the lock – but considering Irvine's sentiments on Sora, maybe it was better to go on.

"We can still look around for a couple more days," Riku offered quietly and she jerked her head around to stare at him intently. He shrugged, offering her a tiny smile. "No harm in letting you saps get your way."

"Us saps?" Kairi asked, arching an eyebrow pointedly. "I think there may be three of us."

"Are you accusing me of something?" Riku asked darkly, the hint of a smile in his eyes giving him away.

"You'll have to catch me to find out," Kairi said mischievously, and bolted toward where she could see Sora's familiar spiky head.

A moment later all three of them were in a pile of twined limbs, laughing at the indignant expression on Sora's face before he joined in, all three of them happy for the moment.

--------------------

Once again, sorry this took so long, and sorry for anyone's reviews I haven't answered. I hit a road block in the next chapter as well that I only recently got passed so hopefully that chapter will be out quicker. It includes Riku's birthday which was not the road block - getting to it was.


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